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Gold, Gods and Women Marta Lindeberg

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Gold, Gods and Women Marta Lindeberg 99 Gold, Gods and Women Marta Lindeberg Women in lron Age Scandinavia were not passive homemakers. Instead they had considerable interest in and occasional influence over events outside the domestic sphere. Through a study of the gold bracteates - their function, runic inscriptions and iconography —the role of women will be investigated. Gold bracteates were not artefacts with exclusively male associations, but rather, they demonstrate the influence of women in political matters. Marta Eindeberg, Department of' Archaeology, Stockholm Unive&sitv, SE-10691 Stockholm, Sweden. The stereotypical image of Iron Age woman the hoards containing bracteates can be as a passive homemaker with little or no attributed to both men and women, and interest or influence outside the domestic bracteates in graves largely to women (Hauck sphere may need to be reconsidered, since the et al. 1985:1lf). There are a number of influence of women in the political sphere has exceptions which occur also in southern and not been sufficiently acknowledged. By using western Norway, where bracteates have been the gold bracteates as a starting point, this recorded in male graves (Andrén 1991:246). study will attempt to give a more balanced Bracteates were worn around the neck as analysis of the female gender roles during the pendants and may have been intended as Iron Age. The function, iconography and runic protective amulets. They were, however, inscriptions of the bracteates have generally primarily ornaments of prestige which been considered in terms of masculine con- indi cated that the wearer belonged to the high- texts, in spite of the fact that bracteates are est social-economic class (Axboe 1990:27). often found in feminine contexts. Bracteates have been analyzed thoroughly by Oberg (1942), Mackeprang (1952), Mal- GOLD BRACTEATES mer (1963) and Hauck et al. (1985) among Gold bracteates were used during the Migra- others. tion Period in southern Scandinavia, but are also found in England and central Europe. THE POLITICAL ENVIRONMENT Bracteates are found both in graves and in Gold bracteates appeared at a time when the hoards, but there are significant differences in social system founded on kinship was no their distributions. Hoards are found in Den- longer in sole control. During the Migration mark, southern Sweden, southern Norway and Period a number of small chiefdoms developed, on the southern Baltic coast. Ouside this cen- which struggled against each other for tral territory, gold bracteates only occur in dominance. Increasingly, these chiefdoms grave s, except in southern and western Norway evidently had to build alliances over larger where they are found in both grave s and hoards geographical areas than had previously been (Andrén 1991:246).According to Karl Hauck, necessary. Tove Hjt&trungdal (1991:112ff)has Carrent Swedish Archaeology, Vol. 5, 1997 100 Marta Lintleberg analyzed the archaeological material from bracteates held special significance in the Vestlandet in Norway, and she regards the exchange of gifts. As both jewellery and gifts, early Iron Age as a period characterized by gold bracteates demonstrated prestige and the ideological conflicts between the older, highest political status. kinship-based society, which was largely maintained by women, and the newer male- THE ROLE OF WOMEN IN IRON dominated political system of chiefdoms, AGE SOCIETY which depended on greater contacts and The division oflabour in Iron Age Scandinavia alliances between groups separated by vast is generally regarded in terms of a rigid sepa- geographical distances. This new system ration between the public sphere, which was engendered a new aesthetic of the masculine controlled by the men, and the domestic sphere warrior, which is subsequently reflected in the to which women were confined. Seemingly, weapon graves. The retinue was of greater the dividing line between the public and importance in this new social system (Hedea- domestic spheres was drawn at the threshold. ger 1992:184ff;Axboe 1996:196).The Mig- Any work or chores within the home was the ration Period is regarded as a ti me characterized sole responsibility of the women. Similarly by widespread violence and upheaval. Char- any work outside was performed by the men lotte Fabech is of the opinion that the people of (Holtsmark 1964:565). This division of la- this period lived in societies which were bour, which is regarded as having been a affected by aggression and war (Fabech social norm, can be traced back to the writings 1991:283) and that this is reflected, for of Aristotle. This model prevails, and even example, in the war-booty sacrifices (for a today it is u sed uncritically (Arwill-Nordbladh different opinion on the crisis of the Migration 1994:36ff). This conventional view of the Period, see Näsman 1988). division of labour in prehistoric societies does The standard view of the Migration Period notgive acomprehensivepicture, and therefore might be considered over-simplified and one- the conclusions drawn from these notions dimensional. If this is the case, certain regarding male and female activity are modifications of this view may be in order. fallacious. Indeed it might be said that For example, war and aggression have been differences between the gender roles of men over-emphasized and less attention has been and women have been over-emphasized, and paid to the more mundane aspects oflife in the consequently the potential for both men and period. As a result, gold bracteates have been women to transgress the imagined boundaries given an all too militaristic interpretation, in of their respective spheres, has been which male associations are taken for granted. overlooked. By confining male and female In the evolving chiefdoms of the Scandi- gender roles and behaviour-impermeable navian region a system of reciprocal gift- spheres, a rigid framework is established which giving developed as a means of consolidating cannot easily accomodate evidence which is and ensuring mutual trust and goodwill suggestive of such transgressions. Indeed, such between the different groups involved in poli- evidence is often omitted or regarded as tical alliances, as they were not kinsmen. The anomalous or marginalised for precisely this gift was a potent tool for forging new alliances reason. In other words, it would be better to or reaffirming old ones (Vestergaard1991 :98). avoid such inflexible stereotypes in favour of Aron J. Gurevich describes the relationship a looser model in which the traditional roles of between giver and receiver as characterized men and women might more easily overlap. by "magic dependence" (Gurevich 1985:223). The state of opposition that Hjprungdal In this climate, in which bonds of kinship (1991: 112ft)discerns between the old kinship- were supplemented by pol itical all iances, gold based ideology maintained by women and the Cttrtettt Sssetiish Arehaeologi; Viih 5, l997 Gold, Gods and Woinen 101 male warrior aesthetic, might not stand in 1994:6, my translation). sharp contrast to each other. The differences Another example of the permeability that appear in the archaeological material found between the roles of men and women is the in graves may evoke the different roles played Viking Age rune stone from Jättendal, Häl- by men and women in this period, rather than singland, which was carved by a woman (Klint- being evidence of a conflict of interests berg 1996).The complementary roles of men between the two groups. The two different and women in the division of labour were ideologies may be regarded as complementary conditioned culturally and were to a greater rather than in opposition to each other, and extent fixed, which naturally limited personal both systems were necessary to accomodate choice. However, a certain merging of the changes in society. gender roles was necessary in some situa- Many different conclusions have been tions. Perhaps gold bracteates reflect a situa- drawn from the analyses of Old Norse- tion in which the role of women was pivotal Icelandic literature, in which women are often to the public sphere. decribed as strong and willful. Therefore the In Norse-Icelandic literature it was the opinions regarding the postion of the Iron Age woman who could, withoutputting her honour women vary accordingly. The literature is at stake, cross the division between the gender considered to reflect that strong and indepen- roles. The same kind of overstepping of dent women were apparently typical (Gutt- boundaries by a man was not socially accepta- ormsson 1992:188;Mundal 1992).Altemativ- ble. A man in this situation would lose social ely, it has been argued that such literature status, whereas a woman could occasionally should be regarded in terms of propaganda behave in a way which was traditionally written by men of the church to emphasize regarded as masculine. These women are their progress towards civilization since heat- portrayed favourably in the literature, and it is hen times andtodenounce independent women emphasized, by stressing their femininity and (Jochens 1986). Naturally these analyses are female characteristics, that they were not con- not wholly objective but are coloured by per- sidered manly. Strong women were sonal views, and consequently the conclusions appreciated, and the strength of men and regarding the prehistoric woman become women was regarded equally (Meulengracht biased to a certain extent. One example of this Sörensen 1993:206). is the image of Iron Age woman as homemaker, It is essential that the general view of Iron responsible for the family budget, which is Age women is discussed in depth, as the image manifest in descriptions of the Viking Age that is often put forward is too simplistic and (Arwil l-Nordbladh 1991).There is widespread overlooks important subtleties. agreement that women of the period rarely, if ever, ventured outside their allotted sphere of WOMEN AND ALLIANCES influence. However, by comparing legal As mentioned previously, the gold bracteates documents with rune stones and registers of have been interpreted as a medium that landed property, Birgit Sawyer has come to facilitated political arrangements.
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