Provided by the author(s) and University College Dublin Library in accordance with publisher policies. Please cite the published version when available. Title The Economy of Early Medieval Ireland Authors(s) Kerr, Thomas; McCormick, Finbar; O'Sullivan, Aidan Publication date 2013-12-31 Series Early Medieval Archaeology Project (EMAP 2) Reconstructing the Early Medieval Irish Economy EMAP Report 7.1 Publisher Early Medieval Archaeology Project (EMAP), UCD School of Archaeology, and School of Geography, Archaeology and Palaeoecology, Queens University Belfast. Item record/more information http://hdl.handle.net/10197/10939 Downloaded 2021-10-02T00:04:00Z The UCD community has made this article openly available. Please share how this access benefits you. Your story matters! (@ucd_oa) © Some rights reserved. For more information, please see the item record link above. The Early Medieval Archaeology Project (EMAP): Project Report 2013 The Economy of Early Medieval Ireland. By: Thomas R Kerr, Finbar McCormick & Aidan O'Sullivan Early Medieval Archaeology Project (EMAP 2) Report 7:1 December 2013 Report submitted for: Irish National Strategic Archaeological Research (INSTAR) programme 2013 Ref: AR03743 Table of Contents Foreward: ............................................................. 1 Chapter 1: Documentary Evidence for Economic Activity in Early Medieval Ireland ......................... 2 Dóer céilsine Relationships: ............................................................................... 3 Sóer céilsine Relationships: ................................................................................ 6 Other Economic Relationships:........................................................................... 7 Discussion: ......................................................................................................... 8 Chapter 2: Archaeological Evidence for Economic Activity in Early Medieval Ireland. ...................... 12 Livestock Farming: ........................................................................................... 13 Cattle: .............................................................................................................................. 13 Pigs: ................................................................................................................................. 14 Sheep: .............................................................................................................................. 15 Cereal Production: ............................................................................................ 15 Macrofossils: .................................................................................................................... 15 Barns: ............................................................................................................................... 16 Cereal-Drying Kilns: ......................................................................................................... 16 Water Mills: ..................................................................................................................... 17 Industrial Activity: ........................................................................................... 17 Iron-working .................................................................................................................... 17 Textile Making ................................................................................................................. 23 Non-Ferrous Metal-Working ........................................................................................... 25 Glass, Enamel and Milliefiori-Working: ........................................................................... 28 Bone, Antler and Horn-Working: ..................................................................................... 29 Leatherworking: .............................................................................................................. 31 Stone-working: ................................................................................................................ 32 Woodworking .................................................................................................................. 34 Pottery Manufacture: ...................................................................................................... 35 Conclusion ........................................................................................................ 37 A.D. 400-600: ................................................................................................................... 38 A.D. 600-800: ................................................................................................................... 38 A.D. 800-1000:................................................................................................................. 39 A.D. 1000-1150:............................................................................................................... 40 Chapter 3:Economic Theory ............................... 41 Introduction: .................................................................................................... 41 Substantavism vs Formalism ............................................................................ 41 Critique: ........................................................................................................... 43 Archaeological Economic Models for ‘Dark Age’ Europe: .................................. 44 Conclusion: ....................................................................................................... 46 Chapter 4: Evidence for ‘Trade’ in Early Medieval Ireland ................................................................ 47 Imports: ........................................................................................................... 49 Wine: ............................................................................................................................... 49 Olive Oil: .......................................................................................................................... 50 Glass: ............................................................................................................................... 50 Salt: .................................................................................................................................. 51 Grain: ............................................................................................................................... 51 Exports ............................................................................................................. 52 Example 1: Slaves ............................................................................................................ 52 Example 2: Leather Goods and Textile ............................................................................ 55 Example 3: Butter ............................................................................................................ 57 Trade Ships: ..................................................................................................................... 58 Internal Trade .................................................................................................. 59 Example 1: Cereal-Grinding Stones: ................................................................................ 60 Example 2: Iron Ore ......................................................................................................... 63 Conclusion ........................................................................................................ 64 Chapter 5: A Model Irish Economy ..................... 65 Conclusion ........................................................................................................ 69 Glossary of Old Irish Terms ................................ 72 Bibliography: ...................................................... 74 Foreward: The excavation boom in the early twenty-first century has created a substantial archaeological database for early medieval Ireland. The Early Medieval Archaeology Project (EMAP) was established to synthesise and publicise the results of these excavation. Funded under the Irish National Strategic Archaeological Research programme (INSTAR) of the Heritage Council, RoI, EMAP has produced a broad overview of the subject area (O’Sullivan et al. 2013), as well as specific monographs on the agricultural and industrial economies (EMAP 2011; EMAP 2012). This current work represents an attempt to pull together the various strands of the early medieval Irish economy and to create a synthesis of current understanding of economic activity during this period. As such this work is divided into five chapters. Chapter 1 examines the documentary evidence for economic activity in Ireland. This is largely found in the, mainly eighth-century law tracts, which are predominantly preoccupied with the farming economy, especially pastoral farming and its relationships with the wider social structure. These works have had a major impact on the later interpretations of archaeological sites. Chapter 2 looks at the archaeological record for productive activity in Ireland. Unlike most other studies, this chapter combines both farming activity and industrial, or craft- working, activity, since it is clear that there was a substantial amount of inter- relations between these sectors during the early medieval period. Chapter 3 provides a summary of the competing