Gásir in Eyjafjörđur: International Exchange and Local Economy in Medieval Iceland

Abstract

-The site of Gásir in Eyjafjörður in northeast Iceland was excavated from [2001][2002][2003][2004][2005][2006], revealing details of one of the larger seasonal trading centers of medieval Iceland. Interdisciplinary investigations of the site have shed light upon the organization of the site and provided confi rmation of documentary accounts of both prestige items (gyrfalcons, walrus ivory) and bulk goods (sulphur) concentrated for export. Gásir was a major point of cultural contact as well as economic exchange between Icelanders and the world of medieval Europe, and the zooarchaeological analyses indicated a mix of foodways and the presence of exotic animals and a well-developed provisioning system, which supplied high-quality meat and fresh fi sh to the traders. The excavations demonstrated an unexpected regional-level economic impact of the seasonally occupied site on the surrounding rural countryside, and contribute to ongoing investigations of the extent and impact of overseas trade in medieval Iceland.

Zooarchaeology in Oceania: An overview

“…), and they were very rare in Iceland by the late fourteenth century (Harrison et al . : 110). Although cereal agriculture was impossible in Greenland and barely possible in Iceland, free‐range pigs clearly had a deleterious effect on Norse land management systems in both regions.…”

A millennium of Icelandic archaeological fish data examined against marine climate records

“…(1) The faunal zooarchaeological record moves from one in which a variety of gadids such as Atlantic cod, haddock ( Melanogrammus aeglefinus ), ling ( Molva molva ), and saithe ( Pollachius virens ) are present to one in which cod becomes dominant. (2) The size of the Atlantic cod being caught becomes increasingly consistent and standardized (Perdikaris, 1999; Amundsen et al, 2005; Krivogorskaya et al, 2005; Harrison et al, 2008). Both of these phenomena are the product of the integration of the Icelandic cod fisheries into larger market networks and the resulting commodification of dried-cod products, especially stockfish (Hambrecht, 2015; McGovern et al, 2006; Perdikaris, 1999; Perdikaris et al, 2007).…”

“…Both of these phenomena are the product of the integration of the Icelandic cod fisheries into larger market networks and the resulting commodification of dried-cod products, especially stockfish (Hambrecht, 2015; McGovern et al, 2006; Perdikaris, 1999; Perdikaris et al, 2007). This high medieval intensification is reflected in multiple archaeofauna and is a major topic for archaeological (Harrison et al, 2008; Harrison, 2013, 2014a) and interdisciplinary collaborations combining documentary and archaeological evidence under the Humanities for Environment Circumpolar Observatories initiative (Hartman et al, 2017; , last accessed 2.15.19).…”

Marine Shielings in Medieval Norse Greenland

“…Whether or not L'Anse aux Meadows is synonymous with Leifsbuðir of the medieval written record, it raises the possibility that the Old Norse "buðir" (booths) place-names could, in fact, refer to such types of specialized/provisional basecamps. Other examples of buðir in Greenland have mainly been discussed in the context "thing" (assembly) sites (e.g., Bruun 1895;Clemmensen 1911;Gulløv 2008a;Nørlund and Stenberger 1934) as known both historically and archaeologically from Iceland (e.g., Byock 2002;Harrison et al 2008;Mehler 2015;Vésteinsson 2013). However, based on this analysis, buðir should-as suggested elsewhere-perhaps rather signify any type of temporary or seasonal "lodging for travelers, seafarers, fishermen, or hunters" (Magnusen 1827b:326) in the context of medieval Norse Greenland.…”