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2021
Journal article
Unwrapping the Galloway Hoard
Unwrapping the Galloway Hoard is a three-year UK Arts & Humanities Research Council (AHRC) project (2021- 2024) which aims to challenge current understanding of the process of hoarding through an interdisciplinary study of one of the best-preserved hoards found in Britain to date.Harris, Susanna ; Goldberg, Martin
Galloway Hoard, organic and inorganic artefacts, textiles, silver, leather, and golf
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2021
Podcast
Galloway Hoard
In September 2014, a metal detectorist discovered the rarest collection of Viking-age objects ever found to date in Britain. The Galloway hoard displays a remarkable variety of material and treasures, not only from the United Kingdom but as far as central Asia. In this episode, Dr. Martin Goldberg, the Senior...Goldberg, Martin ; Jarman, Cat
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2022
Book chapter
The Viking-Age Silver and Gold of Scotland
The Viking Age in Scotland reviews two decades of research that have taken place since the last archaeological survey of the Vikings in Scotland, published in 1998. Advances in scientific analysis have greatly improved our understanding of Scandinavian daily life between the late eighth and fifteenth centuries, and new discoveries...Goldberg, Martin
Settlement, Archaeology, Viking, Burial, Economy , Scotland, Norse, and Migration
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2023
Journal article
Textiles in a Viking Age hoard: Identifying ephemeral traces of textiles in metal corrosion products
This paper presents a novel method and terminology to identify and describe textiles from ephemeral traces in metal corrosion products. Since the 1980s, mineralised textiles (positive and negative casts in Janaway’s terminology) have been an important source of archaeological evidence. A major issue now is the identification of textiles in...Davis, Mary ; Harris, Susanna
Anglo-Saxon, Microscopy, Viking age, Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Textile , Silver, Mineralisation, and Copper corrosion
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Lecture
Destruction and Deposition at Duddingston Loch
Dr Matthew Knight is a Senior Curator of Prehistory at the National Museums Scotland, responsible for the Scottish Chalcolithic and Bronze Age collections. Matthew completed his BSc and MA at the University of Exeter between 2009 and 2014, during which he explored links between Bronze Age metalworking evidence, settlement activities...Knight, Matthew
Research, swords, spearheads, Archaeology, and Bronze Age
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Conference paper (unpublished)
Where are all the ‘Elites’? Hallstatt C metalwork from Britain and connections with the Continent
It is well-established that, in contrast to many parts of the Continent, Britain lacks clear evidence of ostentatious funerary practices so, as a result, evidence of elites during the Hallstatt C period is largely circumstantial. Many bronze and a few iron objects of the Llyn Fawr metalwork assemblage remain some...Knight, Matthew ; O'Connor, Brendan
Halstatt C, hoards, metalwork, bronze swords, socketed axeheads, Llyn Fawr , Early Iron Age, rapezoidal razors, and chapes
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2022
Journal article
Scottish heart brooches a re-evaluation of the luckenbooth
This article presents a study of Scottish heart brooches, primarily from the 18th century, using the collections of the National Museums Scotland, Inverness Museum and Art Gallery, the Highland Folk Museum and those reported to the Treasure Trove Unit. By researching over 350 heart brooches it has been possible to...McGill, Lyndsay
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2022
Newspaper article
Shedding new light on some of Scotland's greatest Roman silver treasures - Dr Fraser Hunter
One of the greatest treasures on display in the National Museum of Scotland is the late Roman silver hoard from Traprain Law in East Lothian, which fills three cases in the Early People gallery. Found in excavations in 1919, it’s been on display pretty much constantly since 1920. Now, more...Hunter, Fraser
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2022
Journal article
'Polished stone axehead' In: Claire Christie, Magnar Dalland. The excavation of a prehistoric settlement at Lower Slackbuie, Inverness
The expansion of Inverness southwards has led to the uncovering of a landscape rich in archaeological activity, dating from the Neolithic period onwards. The abundance of archaeological evidence as been interpreted as indicating that the area was a hub for prehistoric activity (Hatherley & Murray 2021). The excavation of an...Anderson-Whymark, Hugo
Grooved Ware, axe, linseed, scraper, flax, palisade, roundhouse, Carinated Bowl, and bangle
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Lecture
Unwrapping the Galloway Hoard
The Galloway Hoard contains an unusual variety of materials and artefact types beyond the silver bullion so often found in Viking-age hoards. The find included heirlooms, ecclesiastical items (one of which names a previously unknown Northumbrian bishop), and the rare preservation of organic materials wrapping parcels and distinct groups. A...Goldberg, Martin
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2022
Podcast
The Galloway Hoard
Listen in as Dr Adrián Maldonado and Dr Tim Carlisle discuss: ‘What is a hoard?’ and ‘what makes The Galloway Hoard so unique?’Maldonado, Adrián ; Carlisle, Tim
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2022
Abstract
Unwrapping the Galloway Hoard: Object Biographies in the Galloway Hoard
The stereotype of Viking-age hoards in Britain is that they are products of an international context of mobility, migration and raiding, buried at times of stress or under duress. Initially heralded as a ‘Viking’ hoard par excellence, the ongoing conservation and research on the Galloway Hoard from southwest Scotland continues...Goldberg, Martin ; Davis, Mary
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2022
Book chapter
Other hoards with Roman Hacksilber
This appendix offers background and analysis of all Hacksilber hoards, defined here as hoards with cut, folded or crushed Roman plate.Hunter, Fraser
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Book chapter
Compositional data from the Traprain Treasure
Analysis of the Traprain Law Treasure was under-taken in the science laboratory of National Museums Scotland between 2008 and 2018. Ninety-three fragments of the silver were investigated by X-ray fluorescence analysis (XRF) and particle-induced X-ray emission analysis (uPIXE)Troalen, Lore ; Tate, Jim
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2022
Book chapter
The Treasure of Traprain: conclusions and questions
Tackling the Hacksilber hoard from Traprain Law is an imposing project. Not only in the primary publication by Alexander Curle a masterly analysis that has survived the test of time, but the sheer scale of the material is daunting. Our work suggests that the surviving 23kg consisted of 327 individual...Hunter, Fraser ; Kaufmann-Heinimann, Annemarie ; Painter, Kenneth
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2022
Book chapter
After the Traprain Treasure: Hacksilber hoarding in 5th/6th-century Scotland
After the supply of late Roman silver was cut off in the 5th century, this precious metal became a finite resource in northern Britain until new supplies were introduced during the Viking Age. In between these two periods of abundant supply, the chronology of silver use and recycling in early...Goldberg, Martin ; Blackwell, Alice
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2022
Book chapter
Hacksilber in the Roman period and beyond
Although Alexander Curle was able to call on the Ballinrees (Coleraine) hoard from Northern Ireland as a parallel for the hacking of Traprain, it was not until Wilhelm Grunhagen's 1954 study of the Großbodungen hoard (Thüringen/Germany) [Illus 41.1] that Hacksilber saw serious study as a concept in the Roman period....Hunter, Fraser
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2022
Book chapter
Hacking the Traprain Treasure
The Traprain Law Treasure1 has traditionally been viewed as a group of late Roman silver that met an unfortunate fate. Most vessels had been completely distorted, often by multiple hacking phases, with fittings removed, rims severed, footrings pushed out of position and sometimes even split lengthwise. Many had been crushed...Hunter, Fraser
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Book chapter
The technology of the Traprain Treasure
When the hoard was first found, according to Alexander Curle, the metal was greyish-brown and 'appeared to be embedded in a purple paste'.Troalen, Lore ; Lang, Janet
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Book chapter
Insights from unidentified fragments
Alexander Curle's published catalogue consists of 152 entries, which correlate directly with National Museums Scotland catalogue nos GVA 1-152. His entry 144 is for a 'collection of irregularly-shaped fragments of undecorated, thin pieces of plate which has probably broken off platters or other flat dishes.Hunter, Fraser
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2022
Blog post
The many lives of the Traprain Treasure’s Roman silver
One of the greatest treasures of our museum is the late Roman silver hoard from Traprain Law in East Lothian, which fills three display cases in the Early People gallery. Found in excavations in 1919, it’s been on display pretty much constantly since 1920. Now, more than a century after...Hunter, Fraser
Traprain Treasure, Silver, and Roman
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Exhibition-related event
The Galloway Hoard
Dr Adrian Maldonado, Galloway Hoard Researcher, National Museums Scotland. Dr Adrian Maldonado will unearth the history and stories surrounding the Galloway Hoard, currently on display in Aberdeen Art Gallery. Discover how these stunning objects were assembled 1,100 years ago, and how they are reshaping our understanding of the Viking Age...Maldonado, Adrián
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2022
Lecture
A new Late Bronze Age sword from Swettenham, Cheshire, and its wider context Swettenham
This lecture was delivered by Matt Knight, Senior Curator of Prehistory, National Museums of Scotland, with Vanessa Oakden, Oakden In 2018 five fragments of an almost complete late Bronze Age copper-alloy sword were recovered during metal detecting at Swettenham, Cheshire. The sword falls within the ‘transitional’ group of carp’s-tongue swords...Knight, Matthew ; Oakden, Vanessa ; Jones, Ben ; Brandherm, Dirk
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2022
Blog post
The value of broken things: fragments from the Bronze Age
The value of an object is often framed in terms of its completeness. As individuals and as a museum, we like pristine things and try to keep them that way. If something breaks, we repair it. If it is broken beyond repair, we may replace it. And yet, sometimes it...Knight, Matthew
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2022
Book chapter
The goldworking of Riqqa, Egypt: Analysis and comparison between the 12th and 18th dynasties, in Quiles
The first Science for Ancient Egyptian Materials and Technologies conference was held under the auspices of His Excellency Pr. Khaled el-Enany at the Manial Palace Museum in Cairo, from 4 to 6 November 2017. Its aim was to provide a venue at which specialists in the application of physical and...Troalen, Lore ; Guerra, Maria Filomena ; Maitland, Margaret ; Ponting, Matthew ; Price, Campbell
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2021
Journal article
A late Bronze Age carp’s-tongue sword from Swettenham, Cheshire
In 2018 five fragments of an almost complete late Bronze Age copper alloy sword were recovered during metal detecting at Swettenham, Cheshire, and subsequently reported to the Portable Antiquities Scheme. This article outlines the discovery of the sword, its typological features and the nature of its fragmentation, as well as...Knight, Matthew G ; Oakden, Vanessa ; Jones, Ben ; Brandherm, Dirk
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2021
Journal article
'Shale and cannel coal’, ‘Cannel coal’, and ‘Cannel coal bangle’ in O’Connell, C. & Anderson, S. 2020. Excavations in a prehistoric landscape at Blackfor'd, Perth & Kinross, 2007–8'
The extensive remains of enclosed and unenclosed prehistoric settlements, including the remains of at least 14 circular structures, were discovered within ten areas of archaeological interest, situated on well-drained knolls in an undulating landscape north of Blackford village. The settlements have been dated principally to the Middle and Late Bronze...Hunter, Fraser
Unenclosed settlement, Enclosed, settlement, Palisade, and Roundhouse
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2021
Blog post
Teaching Mary: Mary, Queen of Scots public programmes at the National Museum of Scotland, June to November 2013
In the first of series of posts on 'Teaching Mary in the 21st Century', Emma Webb and Rachel Drury (members of the Learning and Engagement team at National Museums Scotland) reflect on the public events programme that accompanied the 2013 exhibiton 'Mary, Queen of Scots' and explore some of the...Webb, Emma ; Drury, Rachel
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2022
Book
Fragments of the Bronze Age: the destruction and deposition of metalwork in South-West Britain and its wider context
The destruction and deposition of metalwork is a widely recognised phenomenon across Bronze Age Europe. Weapons were decommissioned and thrown into rivers; axes were fragmented and piled in hoards; and ornaments were crushed, contorted and placed in certain landscapes. Interpretation of this material is often considered in terms of whether...Knight, Matthew G
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Conference paper (unpublished)
Brough of Birsay revisited: a new look at the Pictish workshop
Maldonado, Adrián
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2022
Lecture
“Piece Offerings”: the Destruction and Deposition of Metalwork in Bronze Age Britain?
The destruction and deposition of Bronze Age metalwork took many forms. Weapons were decommissioned and thrown into rivers; axes were fragmented and piled in hoards; and ornaments were crushed, contorted and placed in certain landscapes. There are many such examples from south-west Britain. But what did these practices mean to...Knight, Matthew G
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Conference paper (unpublished)
Roman silver transformed: Hacksilber, its nature, uses and effects
Of the various forms of precious metal in the Roman world, Hacksilber is perhaps the least glamorous. These cut and crushed fragments of silver have received much less attention than intact plate or coinage. Yet they can cast fresh light on the ways in which precious metal was used in...Hunter, Fraser
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2020
Journal article
Gold in Britain’s auriferous regions, 2450–800 BC
Incorruptible and brilliant, and shining like the sun, gold has always attracted attention. From its earliest known use at Varna around 4500 BC, this metal has been utilised to make some of the finest objects humans have ever possessed. Gold use, and the know-how to work it, arrived in Britain...Knight, Matthew G ; Sheridan, J A ; Horak, Jana
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2021
Book chapter
Archaeological applications of natural gold analyses
Compositional studies of natural gold usually have a geological focus, but are also important in archaeological provenancing. Both methodologies rely on compositional comparison of two sets of samples, one of which is geographically constrained. Here we describe how experiences in gold characterization resulting from geological studies are relevant to archaeology....Standish, C D ; Chapman, R J ; Moles, N R ; Walshaw, R D ; Sheridan, J A
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2021
Journal article
An Iron Age burial with a polished stone disc from Baledgarno, Perth and Kinross
A polished stone disc which has long lurked in Dundee Museum’s collections is identified as a rare example associated with an Iron Age burial. This was an occasional but recurrent rite during the Roman Iron Age, with parallels further up the E coast as far as Shetland. Where the burial...Hunter, Fraser
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2021
Blog post
The Traprain Treasure silver replicas
Every so often an archaeological discovery comes along that grips the imagination of the public. This fascination with the past has driven a production line of replicas, making ‘ancient’ artefacts available for those that wish to own a piece of history. The replicas of the remarkable Roman silver hoard from...McGill, Lyndsay
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2021
Journal article
Peelhill Farm: a possible Late Bronze Age weapon sacrifice in Lanarkshire
The hoard of bronze weapons found in 1961 at Peelhill Farm in South Lanarkshire remains one of the most remarkable discoveries of Late Bronze Age metalwork from Scotland, its importance reflected in the detailed account of the find published by John Coles and Jack Scott in 1963. In the present...Mörtz, Tobias ; Knight, Matthew G ; Cowie, Trevor ; Flint, Jane
Late Bronze Age, Hoard, Conflict, Ritual, and Weapons
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Conference paper (unpublished)
Selective fragmentation: exploring the treatment of metalwork across time and space in Bronze Age Britain
At the end of October the department was the host of a workshop on the topic of fragmentation in archaeological context. The meeting, which was organized by the PAG (Postdoctoral Archaeological Group) at the department of Archaeology and Classical Studies, gathered about 15 participants from various parts of Europe. Postdoctoral...Knight, Matthew
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Lecture
Making sense of silver: the hacking of the Traprain Treasure
RSE Project: Narratives of Roman Scotland in the Digital Age. Organisers: Manuel Fernández-Götz, Chiara Bonacchi and Rebecca JonesHunter, Fraser
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2021
Book chapter
'Analysis of the glass objects' In: Hatherley, Catherine & Murray, Ross 'Culduthel: an Iron Age craftworking centre in North-East Scotland'
The Iron Age settlement at Culduthel is one of the most significant later prehistoric sites identified in mainland Scotland. Archaeological excavation in 2005 revealed a craftworking centre which had specialised in the production of iron, bronze and glass objects between the late 1st Millennium BC and early 1st Millennium AD....Davis, Mary ; Freestone, Ian
prehistory, Highlands & Islands, material culture, Prehistoric archaeology, and northern Scotland
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2021
Book chapter
'The glass artefacts and glass-working debris from Culduthel: typology, discussion and catalogue' In: Hatherley, Catherine & Murray, Ross 'Culduthel: an Iron Age craftworking centre in North-East Scotland'
The Iron Age settlement at Culduthel is one of the most significant later prehistoric sites identified in mainland Scotland. Archaeological excavation in 2005 revealed a craftworking centre which had specialised in the production of iron, bronze and glass objects between the late 1st Millennium BC and early 1st Millennium AD....Hunter, Fraser
prehistory, Highlands & Islands, material culture, Prehistoric archaeology, and northern Scotland
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2021
Book chapter
'Iron artefacts' In: Hatherley, Catherine & Murray, Ross 'Culduthel: an Iron Age craftworking centre in North-East Scotland'
The Iron Age settlement at Culduthel is one of the most significant later prehistoric sites identified in mainland Scotland. Archaeological excavation in 2005 revealed a craftworking centre which had specialised in the production of iron, bronze and glass objects between the late 1st Millennium BC and early 1st Millennium AD....Hunter, Fraser
prehistory, Highlands & Islands, Prehistoric archaeology, material culture , and northern Scotland
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2021
Book chapter
'The Stone Artefacts' In: Hatherley, Catherine & Murray, Ross 'Culduthel: an Iron Age craftworking centre in North-East Scotland'
The Iron Age settlement at Culduthel is one of the most significant later prehistoric sites identified in mainland Scotland. Archaeological excavation in 2005 revealed a craftworking centre which had specialised in the production of iron, bronze and glass objects between the late 1st Millennium BC and early 1st Millennium AD....McLaren, Dawn ; Hunter, Fraser ; McGibbon, Fiona
prehistory, Highlands & Islands, material culture, Prehistoric archaeology, and northern Scotland