The Viking World: A History in ObjectsMain MenuGallery viewA galleryTag Cloudtag cloud pageThemesA path of thematic categoriesAuthor IndexExplore the collection by authorWorks CitedReferencesAdam Bigelow3afa9c7ecebf516bba6609664b1b12f79c54bf77Caitlin Donahue61b7e986e7c71d400e5c803912ed83c0cf65252fCaroline Harvey1783f21a5882b5b4d3d0b6c174d058052a5ff7eaEdward Hershewee701ef220480b51ca728fc9c719bc094cf813655Martin Hoffmana1fd203afd9a84ee8db567e188cf6ed1d269386eTyler Hruby23493f763b312110686cfafc62578fd0ab5f3833Brittany N. Johnsonc1c1763339f8fa953e3c907c6bb8a3bad0c28b2cCarlos Lua Pineda0a28cc23b0aa00b4f24a9e205aeb57fbdb07ff01Moira McConnell710633400590ea38533ea3412c01fc5056288180Clara McCurdy9aec76477d0b55f9c685c47330d6786ec98182e1Elise McIlhaneyef48481634ff342c8b43c9d56f678b2d3562fb69Cameron Meikle669a5682bfbfd603130a26e25628f24eb07e6295Alexander Christopher Newkirk019c2f5b38c043507251d1789e2fdf47e61c3b7fBenja Reilly816c23aa0d444213fb2d1ef33555a15617e08228Oliver Statenc625ae8c3926f5e1a4268bc91d6a6f4cdb1e7fb6Liam Sullivanaa3a1dccb90c7fe4646b61c4af594abbb0c5574aRead Wilder31bf4715220144a665996f2e6cae80a1a8611eadAliza Yazdanicd49f227d88c72331226ddf574bf56c37308cd10Austin Masonf6137011c68eb792c6e14634815583b15e707dea
12017-05-24T10:09:20-07:00Austin Masonf6137011c68eb792c6e14634815583b15e707deaMap ViewAustin Mason2An interactive map of all the objects in the collectiongoogle_maps2017-05-24T11:39:30-07:00Austin Masonf6137011c68eb792c6e14634815583b15e707dea
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12017-05-21T13:06:03-07:00Oliver Statenc625ae8c3926f5e1a4268bc91d6a6f4cdb1e7fb6Cast Lead Weight4Object Pageplain2017-09-21T17:51:32-07:00Tyler Chang4811cb9da8b1643418562acfd23deb0f79c94ad4
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12017-05-21T13:06:03-07:00Cast Lead Weight4Object Pageplain2017-09-21T17:51:32-07:00This orange, amber colored lead weight was found by means of a metal detector near Torksey, England. Weights such as this one represent the Viking economic system, especially in England. The Viking economic system, called the bullion economy, was based on weights and scales, in which the form of the currency did not matter in a transaction. Instead, the Vikings cared only for the quantity and quality of what was generally silver.[1] Therefore, the best way to determine both the amount and quality of English coin was to measure those coins against their own weights.
The specific properties of this weight would have made it ideal for mobile trade. Because this weight is composed almost entirely of lead, and lead is one of the heaviest common metals, this weight would have been the more compact than most metals, and thus would have been better for travel than a lighter, more spacious material. In addition, the weight measures exactly 19.55 grams, meaning that it would have most likely been used in the bullion system.[2] The weight would have been four units of approximately 4.5 grams in the bullion system. This seems likely as the weight is estimated to have been used from 850 to 1000 CE, which is exactly in the middle of the Viking Age.
This weight’s most unique quality is its three slashes down the side. While it seems unlikely that they would represent any sort of weight purpose based on our analysis above, the scratches could perhaps have been used to measure the amount of hacksilver, rings, or bracelets being traded. An even more likely explanation is that this weight’s owner labeled his weights with these three slashes.
Thus, we can conclude that this weight could have been a Norse trader’s personal possession used to measure hacksilver against the English coins and complete a transaction in the early Viking Age in England.[3]
