Viking reservoirs excavated in the UK contain silver traded from the Islamic world, and there are a lot of silver plundered in Europe, new research reveals.
One hundred years ago, the Bedale Reservoir offers a glimpse into the substantial wealth that the Vikings had in England during the Viking era, and includes gold sword paintings, silver jewelry and 29 silver ingots. The hoarding was first discovered in 2012, but archaeologists have just discovered that some of its wealth has been acquired through a long-distance trade network that stretches deep into the Middle East.
Following an analysis published on Monday (August 11), in the Archaeometry journal, researchers concluded that most of the silver in the reservoir came from Western Europe, possibly from looted Anglo-Saxon and Caroline coins. However, a good lump has come from Islamic silver production.
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The researchers’ findings emphasized that they strengthened the Vikings’ connection to the Islamic world and did not plunder the path to wealth.
“Most of us tend to think of the Vikings as Raiders who plundered monasteries and other wealthy places,” said Jane Kershaw, the lead author of Jane Kershaw, an associate professor of Viking-era archaeology at the University of Oxford in the UK, in a statement. “What the analysis of the Bedale Reservoir shows is that it’s just a part of the photograph.”
Related: Hornland Brooch: Viking Age Gold ornaments Mysteriously buried in Denmark 1,000 years ago
The Vikings were the diverse and successful people who created Scandinavia. They are well known for marine raiders and explorers who traveled to diverse lands across at least four continents, including North America, between the 8th and 11th centuries.
Bedale’s reservoir was discovered by metal detectors Stuart Campbell and Steve Caswell near the town of Bedale in northern England. In 2014, the BBC News reported that the storage was valued just over $70,000 (£51,636) in today’s money.
In the new study, researchers used geochemical analysis to identify the original source of silver used to make ingots and gemstones in the reservoir. This analysis reveals that silver was made from Western European currency and Islamic Dirham.
A third of the ingots in the storage coincided with silvery silver, mainly made in the Middle East from the Abbasid Caliphate. This is the third caliph to take over the Islamic prophet Muhammad, which spans much of North Africa and vast territory encompassing modern-day Iran and Iraq.
The silver in the reservoir would have arrived at the Viking via an eastern trade route called the Australian River. According to the Arab chronicler’s account, to get the coveted Dirham, the Vikings traded fur, amber, swords and slaves. The Vikings would have taken this Islamic silver with them when they settled in England.
“Bedale – I love to think about it being at the heart of the much wider Eurasian Viking economy in the Viking era today, a typical British market town in North Yorkshire, Yorkshire,” Kershaw said. “The Vikings not only drew wealth from the locals, but also brought wealth to them when they attacked and settled.”
Viking Quiz: How much do you know about these Seabone Raiders, Traders and Explorers?
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