22 - Viking and Norse Bullion Economies in Scandinavian Scotland

Summary

For Scandinavian Scotland, the study of bullion economies – where metal is weighed and tested to assess its monetary value – is dynamic, with recent finds changing our perceptions of both its origins and longevity. Regarding the former aspect, the Galloway Hoard (Goldberg, this section) suggests knowledge of bullion in the south-west by at least c. 900. At the other end of the chronological scale, recent and forthcoming publications from Late Norse contexts at Cille Pheadair (Paterson 2018) and Bornais on South Uist (Sharples 2020), and at Orkney’s Earl’s Bu (Batey, this volume; forthcoming) suggest bullion use was more widespread than thought and, at least in Scotland’s Northern and Western Isles, was used for longer than previously considered.

Old finds and theories are being reassessed via these new discoveries. In this chapter, for example, the author evaluates suggestions linking the beginnings of bullion use in south-west Scotland with the Great Army and Hiberno-Scandinavians. New finds also refine the picture of the changing Scotto-Scandinavian relationship to metallic currencies across time and, as Vikings in Scotland understood, this refinement tends towards a spectrum of functioning, if not especially wealthy, bullion economies across the region.

Background

Metrological assessment of bullion could be complemented by testing via nicking, ‘pecking’ or even bending to confirm the metal’s purity. The most common bullion was silver, with ‘hack-silver’ the term for deliberately fragmented pieces, apparently created to provide smaller denominations. The influx of silver into Scotland from the years around 900 was likely due to a mixture of looting, trade and migration.

Bullion is commonly associated with hoards, with hoarding having been assessed at both regional (for example, Hårdh 1996; 2008 for Scandinavia and the Baltic) and more local levels (Gruszczyński 2019 for Gotland; Williams 2020b for Yorkshire). They are generally seen as depositions reflecting conscious collection of the currency available in the region, either deposited ritually with no intention of recovery, or used as temporary safes before returning to commercial or gift-giving circulation. Common components are ingots, coins and decorative metalwork like arm-rings, often reduced to hack-silver in regions with evidence of market trade (commerce) with its requirement for multiple denominations. Bullion was measured by scales and weights, as found together at the Kiloran Bay boat burial on Colonsay in the Inner Hebrides (Anderson 1907; Graham-Campbell and Batey 1998: 118–22).