Howell Roberts
Institute of Archaeology, Iceland, Archaeology, Department Member
- Viking Age Archaeology, Arabian Gulf, Vikings in the North Atlantic, Archaeology of Iceland, Qatar, Medieval trade, and 12 moreArchaeology, Medieval Studies, Geoarchaeology, Death and Burial (Archaeology), Viking Studies, Historical Archaeology, Underwater Archaeology, Coastal and Island Archaeology, Arctic Archaeology, 1st Millennium AD (Archaeology), North Atlantic archaeology, and Viking Age Scandinavia and the North Atlanticedit
The stuff of Icelandic history. Material culture as evidence for monopolistic trade and consumption. In Icelandic historiography trade has long had pride of place as the lead indicator of the oscillating fortunes of the Icelandic people.... more
The stuff of Icelandic history. Material culture as evidence for monopolistic trade and consumption. In Icelandic historiography trade has long had pride of place as the lead indicator of the oscillating fortunes of the Icelandic people. Nationalistic historians were obsessed with the Danish Trade Monopoly, in effect from 1602 to 1787, and its supposedly stultifying impact on the Icelandic economy. The unproven assumption has always been that in contrast to this early modern period of doom and depression the middle ages had been characterised by free and vibrant trading, initially controlled by the Icelanders themselves. This paper challenges this view and argues that in the middle ages trade was not only limited in volume compared to the early modern period but also restricted to and effectively controlled by the elite. External trade was insignificant economically, but access to it was controlled, monoplised, by the elite in order to maintain its status. Two strands of evidence ar...
Research Interests: Maritime Archaeology, Yemen, Archaeology of Oman, Nautical Archaeology, Boat Building, and 12 moreRed Sea, Yemen Ethnography, Yemen History, Arabian/Persian Gulf Archaeology, Nautical, Red Sea archaeology, Nautical Archeaology, Nautical Studies, Gulf of Aden, Yemen archaeology, Maritime and Nautical Archaeology, and Dhows
Vettvangsferð sem farin var að Kálfskinni sumarið 2005 var liður í stóru kumlarannsóknarverkefni á landsvísu sem Fornleifastofnun Íslands hóf 10 árum áður. Beindust athuganir í fyrstu að endurskoðun á fyrri rannsóknum og lauk þeim með... more
Vettvangsferð sem farin var að Kálfskinni sumarið 2005 var liður í stóru kumlarannsóknarverkefni á landsvísu sem Fornleifastofnun Íslands hóf 10 árum áður. Beindust athuganir í fyrstu að endurskoðun á fyrri rannsóknum og lauk þeim með endurnýjaðri útgáfu á kumlatali Kristjáns Eldjárns árið 2000. 1 Er megináherslan í því riti á lýsingu og greiningu á haugfé sem fundist hefur í heiðnum gröfum á Íslandi, en um aldamótin hófum við nýjar rannsóknir á kumlum og með nýjum áherslum.