RPF 2016/17: Cultures in communication in the Long Viking Age

Original aims:
(1) To scope the availability of metal-detected data from Denmark, Belgium, and the Netherlands, and investigate its compatibility with the existing English dataset.
ACHIEVED

(2). Develop and trial a methodology for the synthesis and analysis of metal-detected datasets from England, Denmark, Belgium, and the Netherlands. Specifically, this will involve (a) the development of a common vocabulary to cover material recorded across the four regions, and (b) investigation of the compatibility of information regarding dating and findspot locations. ACHIEVED

(3). Build a collaborative network of researchers at institutions across the North Sea, in order to develop a major international project to make use of this new evidence. ACHIEVED

Particular findings of our data-scoping and discussions include the confirmation that:
(1) significant metal-detected data relating to travel and communication in the Viking Age exists in Denmark, Belgium, the Netherlands, and England
(2) This data is stored in diverse formats
(3) Our tailored approaches to the extraction, cleaning, and synthesis of this data are effective
(4) There is significant potential for integration of this data within broader frames of reference, drawing on themes from (i.a.) literature, history, linguistics, and genetics.
(5) The nascent PAN (Netherlands) database provides a model for integration of data on a large scale across multiple regions.

At the end of the pilot project then, we were in an excellent position to progress with the research, which is novel, significant, and timely (in terms of both scholarly context and contemporary politics). There were potentially significant confounds to its funding, however, which consisted in the perceived problems in integrating four sets of complex and 'difficult' data. We are now confident that these problems have been resolved, such that the feasibility of our planned application has been established and can be readily demonstrated.

At present, the PI (Ashby) and Co-I (Tys) are working on developing a large grant application, intended for AHRC in the first instance. Progress on this has been slow but steady, as we scope details of potential case studies and datasets. The project remains novel, with no similar research being attempted on such a scale.