Medieval Archaeology 68.1 now available

Posted On: July 22nd, 2024

I’m very pleased to announce that issue 68.1 of Medieval Archaeology has now been published online and the print copy should be arriving with members shortly. The content in this issue includes seven original articles focusing on new research from Norway, the Caucasus, Poland, Britain and Ireland covering both the early and late medieval periods.

The issue starts with an article by Raymond Sauvage and Richard Macphail on mortuary houses excavated at Skeiet in Vinjeøra, central Norway. Dated from the 6^th through to mid-10^th century, they consisted of timber-walled and roofed buildings as suggested by analysis of soil micromorphology samples. They resembled domestic houses with entrances, as demonstrated by trampled soil entranceways and doorway supports. These may have served as ritualised thresholds between the world of the living and the dead. Inside, fragmentary artefacts and burned animal bones were found, the latter primarily deriving from horses. These are interpreted as potentially connected with the preparation of ritual meals in close connection with the dead, and visitations to the mortuary houses appear to have been frequent. Although no graves were found inside these structures, they may have functioned as temporary resting places for the dead before burial. These houses had a lifespan of around 100-200 years, and were eventually covered by earthen mounds. They provide evidence of long-term continuity in mortuary rituals, in contrast to the changing burial rites in their associated cemetery.

Jake Hubbert’s article considers splashed sgraffito ceramics from three key sites in Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan. These are interpreted as instrumental to constructing a range of social identities within a changing political climate. Elites began to import and reproduce splashed wares in the early 9th and 10th centuries, after which potters began to use sgraffito with monochrome glazed wares, which is connected with the changing political situation at that time. The later abandonment of monochrome wares may reflect increasing political stability towards the end of the 11th / early 12th century under the unified Georgian monarchy. The 12th to 14th centuries saw the rise of splashed and sgraffito wares that more closely matched those produced in Islamic centres. The iconography on these vessels also changed at this time, moving away from simple geometric designs to more complex ones that were often accompanied by botanical, anthropomorphic, and zoomorphic designs. These were also more widely available, interpreted as the lower economic classes in the southern Caucasus seeking to participate in the system of elitism that had developed over the previous three centuries.

Irene Baug, Wojciech Filipowiak, Øystein James Jansen and Torkil Sørlie Røhr then explore the presence of Norwegian whetstones in three sites in present-day north-west Poland. The whetstones, with dates ranging from the 9th to 13th centuries, were imported some distance away, their material deriving from quarries in Mostadmarka (Trøndelag) and Eidsborg (Telemark). From the mid-9th or start of the 10th century, the bulk of whetstones in Wolin derived from Mostadmarka, and consumers preferred this over the local rock type. In the second half of the 11th century, whetstones from Eidsborg started to gain importance, at which point both quarry sites in present-day Norway dominate as production sites for whetstones used in the southern Baltic. Finds of raw material, blanks and production waste in Wolin harbour demonstrate they were worked at the trading centre. Despite cultural, linguistical and religious differences, the preference for these imported stones over local raw materials lasted for centuries, and they are also found in the stronghold at Lubin and Szczecin Castle Hill. They demonstrate the endurance of networks connecting the Norse and Slavic (Wendish) areas over the centuries.

Daniel Patrick Curley and Martin A Timoney consider the construction of a substantial hydrological structure by Toirrdelbach Ó Conchobair, King of Connacht and High-King of Ireland in the 12th century. The authors situate this construction within a period of bridge and fortification building during Toirrdelbach’s reign. Drawing on toponymic, cartographic, historical and archaeological sources, they trace the multi-part capture of the waters of the River Suck, referred to as the tochailt, which consisted of three ditches linking two turloughs and two rivers. The creation of this diversion of the River Suck into the headwaters of the River Hind and vice-versa is interpreted as a direct response to incursions into Toirrdelbach’s territory during the mid-twelfth century. The resulting aquatic barrier between modern south Roscommon and mid-Roscommon, protected and regulated access into and out of the traditional territory of the Gaelic Uí Chonchobair kings of Connacht to the north of this boundary. It also served as a clear demonstration of authority. The tochailt continued to define this landscape throughout the later medieval period and beyond.

Eleanor Standley explores the role of ceramic lobed vessels in 14^th and 15^th century England, suggesting they were part of the drinking material culture used as emotants by affluent, middling elites. These vessels were ideally suited for the consumption of sweetened wine at the end of meals during the ‘voidee’, which mirrored the wafers and chalice used for the Eucharist. The lobed vessels were also used for drinking wine or ale during the telling of popular Romance tales. Poems such as the 15th century versions of Guy of Warwick provide direct instructions for drinking and inspiration for drinking games, and the characters and motifs from the stories are found on the internal decoration of the vessels. The ever-present reminder of the Eucharist would also have been played out in the drinking of wine during those tales which included religious and moral guidance. Drawing on the theoretical framework of emotants, Standley argues the visual and physical attributes of lobed vessels helped to create feelings, and even after the drinking events, these feelings could be roused when remembering and seeing the cups in their mind’s eye.

Hólmfríður Sveinsdóttir’s article considers the discovery of bloodletting fleams from medieval Oslo. These were tools used in the medical practice of phlebotomy and consisted of metal instruments with a lateral blade, the earliest of which is dated to c.1240-1260. The article reviews the distribution of similar objects, and demonstrates that phlebotomy was not confined to monastic institutions or castles, but was also found in urban residential areas. On the basis of these finds, it is argued that bloodletting was carried out across all strata of society, as suggested by written accounts. The fleams most likely reflect the prominence of barbers in late medieval Oslo, who were regarded as craftspeople. The material properties of the objects indicate they were used to hit rather than cut a vein, and drawing on the theoretical framework of corporeality, the study connects the fleams with the widespread conception of the medieval body and its fluid boundaries. By hitting a vein and allowing its bodily substance to flow into the outside world, these objects could actively participate in the entangled relationship between the medieval body and its environment.

Finally, Stephen Wickler explores the manufacture and distribution of bakestones in medieval Norway. Bakestones were an important item of maritime trade transported to northern Norway in exchange for stockfish (dried cod) and are most commonly found in coastal fishing villages and settlement mound sites. The article presents an attribute-based analysis of bakestones from northern Norway in the Arctic University Museum of Norway’s archaeological collection, the first comprehensive study outside of medieval towns. It explores the role of bakestones for Norse/Norwegian maritime settlement and in trade through documenting their spatial and temporal distribution. Detailed analysis of the bakestone surface provides evidence for their re-use, highlighting the increased value of these objects as an imported trade commodity for communities situated far from their source. A large sample of bakestones was also analysed using XRF, and the results compared to geochemical data for waste material from bakestone quarries in Trøndelag and Hardanger. This suggested the quarries at Ølve-Hatlestrand in Hardanger were the most probable source area for the majority of these objects. Residue analysis also indicated the presence of lipids from marine fauna and potentially domesticated livestock, suggesting a broader range of uses beyond that of producing bread. Whilst bakestones are primarily associated with Norwegian settlement, they also feature in areas with indigenous Sámi and a mixture of Norwegian and Sámi settlements.

The articles are followed by 18 book reviews of recent publications on medieval topics from across Europe, which will help readers keep up to date with the newest research in the field. I hope you all enjoy this volume and the editorial team look forward to bringing you the next one in the winter of 2024. Medieval Archaeology 68.1 can be accessed online here.

Aleks Pluskowski, Honorary Editor of Medieval Archaeology