A Viking Market Kingdom in Ireland and Britain: Trade Networks and the Importation of a Southern Scandinavian Silver Bullion Economy (Routledge Archaeologies of the Viking World)

Summary

By allying Blomkvist's network-kingdoms with Sindbaek's nodal market-networks, it is argued that the political and economic character of Viking-Age Britain and Ireland - my 'Insular Scandinavia' - is best understood if Dublin and Jorvik are seen as being established as nodes of a market-based network kingdom. Based on a dataset relating to the then developing bullion economies of the central and eastern Scandinavian worlds and southern Scandinavia in particular, it is argued that war-band leaders from, or familiar with, 'Danish' markets like Hedeby and Kaupang transposed to Insular Scandinavia the concept of polities based on establishment of markets and the protection of routeways between them. Using this book, readers can think of interlinked Dublin and Great Army elites creating an Insular version of a Danish-style nodal market kingdom based on commerce and silver currencies.