Description
Book SynopsisViking Identities is the first detailed archaeological study of Viking-Age Scandinavian-style female dress items from England. Based on primary archival and archaeological research, including the analysis of hundreds of recent metal-detector finds, it presents evidence for over 500 brooches and pendants worn by women in the late ninth and tenth centuries. Jane F. Kershaw argues that these finds add an entirely new dimension to the limited existing archaeological evidence for Scandinavian activity in the British Isles, and make possible a substantial reassessment of the Viking settlements.In this volume, Kershaw offers an interpretation of the significance of the jewellery in a broad, historical context. The jewellery highlights locations of settlement not commonly associated with the Vikings. In contrast to claims of high levels of cultural assimilation, the jewellery suggests that incoming groups maintained a distinct Scandinavian identity which was sometimes appropriated by the indig
Trade ReviewJane Kershaw shows impressively how Viking women can be found in the archaelogical record. * Harold Mytum, British Archaeology *
This volume is a wonderful asset to Viking Studies, it is well written and presented in a logical form and provides a clear route through the complexities of this range of metal jewellery finds. This book should now be required reading by all who work with material culture, be it Scandinavian, Anglo-Scandinavian or otherwise. * Colleen Batey, Networks and Neighbours *
this is hugely informative and very well-written study of a complex body of material. * Victoria Whitworth, Early Medieval Europe *
Readers of this smart and well-argued book may be surprised (and impressed) by how much information the author can tease from metal-detector finds. * Nancy Wicker, Cambridge Archaeological Journal *
the field of Viking studies will be invigorated by this new study, containing material and interpretations which will be a benchmark for discussions for years to come. * Soren M. Sindbaek, Medieval Archaeology *
Table of Contents1: Scandinavian-style jewellery in England: approaches and sources 2: Identifying Scandinavian and Anglo-Scandinavian jewellery 3: Scandinavian-style jewellery from England: origins, styles, and parallels 4: The production and life-span of Scandinavian-style jewellery 5: Brooch use, culture, and gender 6: Locating Scandinavian influence: the distribution of Scandinavian-style jewellery in England 7: Synthesis and conclusion: constructing cultural identities Bibliography Appendices
