The Craft of Antler, Bone, Horn and Ivory Working in the Early Medieval Emporia c. AD 600-850

This book offers an in-depth exploration of the craft of antler, bone, horn and ivory working as it evolved within the pre-Viking emporia of northern Europe.Over the past few decades, studies of early medieval European trading settlements, known as emporia, have steadily shifted in focus from an emphasis on trade towards an appreciation of the role they played in craft production.This volume highlights one of the most conspicuous crafts to emerge in the pre-Viking emporia of northern Europe - the working of antler, bone, horn and ivory - and explores how and to what degree its development through the Merovingian and Carolingian dynasties influenced its later proliferation in significant Viking sites of the 9th and 10th centuries. Waste materials and surviving evidence of production at most of the emporia, including both unfinished pieces and finished objects, can not only reveal the locations of workshops, but also allow for an estimate of the duration and scale of production.As the ra