Theme:
1. The Material Record: Current Trends and Future Directions
Session format:
Regular session
Title:
Everything Counts in Large Amounts? The Emergence of Trade Networks in Medieval Eastern Europe. The Archaeological and Archaeometric Evidence
Content:
The scarcity of written records from East Central and Eastern Europe in the early Middle Ages means that archaeological and archaeometric research is becoming increasingly important in the study of trade relations. Today, science offers opportunities to enter into broader fields of research. Petrographic, isotopic and material science research can shed light on the origin of objects. Furthermore, aDNA studies can prove the migration of animals or goods. Our aim is to discuss the state of the art of trade research for pre-Mongol East Central and Eastern Europe. In the case of some commodities, we have evidence of their mass circulation. They prove that the medieval world was more open than we thought until recently.
We would like to consider both special and mass finds, those that united the elite (e.g. jewellery, ivory, gemstones, silk, amphorae) and the common people (ceramic, glass, Ovruch slate).
We will discuss methods of identifying imported products and mechanisms of exchange, and ask to what extent they can be taken as evidence of medieval globalisation.
Keywords:
Trade, imports, long-distance, archaeometry, Medieval, East Central and Eastern Europe
Session associated with MERC:
no
Session associated with CIfA:
no
Session associated with SAfA:
no
Session associated with CAA:
no
Session associated with DGUF:
no
Session associated with other:
Main organiser:
Natalia Khamaiko (Germany) 1,2
Co-organisers:
Marcin Woloszyn (Germany) 1,3
Oleksii Komar (Ukraine) 2
Affiliations:
1. The Leibniz Institute for the History and Culture of Eastern Europe (GWZO)
2. The Institute of Archaeology, National Academy of Science of Ukraine
3. Univercity of Rzeszow
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