Shetland and the trade of steatite goods in the North Atlantic region during the Viking and early medieval period
Forster, Amanda K.
Forster, Amanda K.
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The University of Bradford theses are licenced under a Creative Commons Licence.
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University of Bradford
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Department of Archaeological Sciences
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2004
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An investigation into trade and exchange networks in the Norse North Atlantic and the extent to which steatite goods manufactured in Shetland were included in such networks
Abstract
From c. 800AD, settlement of the North Atlantic region by Norwegians introduced wide use of steatite artefacts across the region. Outwith Norway, North Atlantic steatite resources are limited to Shetland and Greenland. The research investigates the extent to which Shetland was involved in trade of steatite goods during the Viking and Early Medieval periods. Artefact assessment has highlighted distinctive steatite artefact types from Shetland, Norway and Greenland. This visual provenance technique allowed comprehensive assessment of imported steatite artefacts from the North Atlantic region.
Steatite usage has subsequently been discussed in three chronological phases: Landnam (c.800-900AD), Norse (c.900-1100) and Medieval (c.1100-1400). An interpretive model presents the most logical synthesis of the archaeological observations, highlighting local and regional trends whilst identifying probable distribution mechanisms.
Shetland's role in the North Atlantic steatite trade was confined to within the political sphere of the Orkney Earldom. Steatite resources at Cunningsburgh formed the focus of the Shetland industry, which may have been a controlled resource by the mid-tenth century. High numbers of Norwegian goods are found at Landnam phase sites, although it is likely that distribution reflects more a movement of people than the existence of long distance trade networks. Consistently low numbers of Norwegian finds from subsequent phases indicate that steatite trade outwith the Northern Isles was limited and sporadic. Development of 'replacement' artefact types (such as ceramics) in areas where steatite was not locally available, reiterates the assertion that access to imports such as steatite was restricted. Despite extensive use of steatite within Greenland, Greenlandic artefacts were not recorded elsewhere.
Research findings have highlighted the need for a reconsideration of exchange mechanisms, questioning the extent to which long distance trade networks provided a significant economic force during the Viking and Early Medieval periods within the
North Atlantic region.
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PhD