Orri Vesteinsson | University of Iceland (original) (raw)
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Papers by Orri Vesteinsson
Journal of Archaeological Science, 2015
Precise chronologies underpin all aspects of archaeological interpretation and, in addition to im... more Precise chronologies underpin all aspects of archaeological interpretation and, in addition to improvements in scientific dating methods themselves, one of the most exciting recent developments has been the use of Bayesian statistical analysis to reinterpret existing information. Such approaches allow the integration of scientific dates, stratigraphy and typological data to provide chronologies with improved precision. Settlement period sites in Iceland offer excellent opportunities to explore this approach, as many benefit from dated tephra layers and AMS radiocarbon dates. Whilst tephrochronology is widely used and can provide excellent chronological control, this method has limitations; the time span between tephra layers can be large and they are not always present. In order to investigate the improved precision available by integrating the scientific dates with the associated archaeological stratigraphy within a Bayesian framework, this research reanalyses the dating evidence from three recent large scale excavations of key Viking Age and medieval sites in Iceland; Aðalstraeti, Hofstaðir and Sveigakot. The approach provides improved chronological precision for the dating of significant events within these sites, allowing a more nuanced understanding of occupation and abandonment. It also demonstrates the potential of incorporating dated typologies into chronological models and the use of models to propose sequences of activities where stratigraphic relationships are missing. Such outcomes have considerable potential in interpreting the archaeology of Iceland and can be applied more widely to sites with similar chronological constraints.
People and Space in the Middle Ages, 300-1300, 2006
In the period when feudal institutions were at their height, these non-feudal societies on the fr... more In the period when feudal institutions were at their height, these non-feudal societies on the fringes of the West were certainly not unfamiliar with the dependence of the small farmer (whether slave, freedman or free man) upon a richer man than himself, or the devotion of the companion to the prince or the leader of the war-band. But they had nothing which recalled the vast, hierarchically organized system of peasant subjection and military vassalage to which we give the name feudalism. 1 In the study of early medieval Europe, Scandinavia ...
Viking and Medieval Scandinavia, 2007
I t is a view of long standing that before the political turmoil of the thirteenth century, polit... more I t is a view of long standing that before the political turmoil of the thirteenth century, political power in Iceland was in the hands of a uniformly free and independent class of farmers. These farmers are not only supposed to have owned their own farms by and large, they are also supposed to have had political influence through a system of near-democratic assemblies and through their freedom to associate themselves with whichever chieftain they chose. The chieftains are considered to have had relatively limited authority, their powers kept in check by each other and by the farmers' right to move their allegiance between chieftains.
Comparison of the distribution of pagan burials in Iceland with medieval information about the nu... more Comparison of the distribution of pagan burials in Iceland with medieval information about the number of farmers in different parts of the country allows a division of the country into three zones of low, medium and high frequency of pagan burials relative to the number of settlements. Possible explanations for these differences are briefly explored. This paper is a product of the project Death and burial in Iceland for 1150 years and sets out some of the problems it aims to solve.
Journal of Archaeological Science, 2015
Precise chronologies underpin all aspects of archaeological interpretation and, in addition to im... more Precise chronologies underpin all aspects of archaeological interpretation and, in addition to improvements in scientific dating methods themselves, one of the most exciting recent developments has been the use of Bayesian statistical analysis to reinterpret existing information. Such approaches allow the integration of scientific dates, stratigraphy and typological data to provide chronologies with improved precision. Settlement period sites in Iceland offer excellent opportunities to explore this approach, as many benefit from dated tephra layers and AMS radiocarbon dates. Whilst tephrochronology is widely used and can provide excellent chronological control, this method has limitations; the time span between tephra layers can be large and they are not always present. In order to investigate the improved precision available by integrating the scientific dates with the associated archaeological stratigraphy within a Bayesian framework, this research reanalyses the dating evidence from three recent large scale excavations of key Viking Age and medieval sites in Iceland; Aðalstraeti, Hofstaðir and Sveigakot. The approach provides improved chronological precision for the dating of significant events within these sites, allowing a more nuanced understanding of occupation and abandonment. It also demonstrates the potential of incorporating dated typologies into chronological models and the use of models to propose sequences of activities where stratigraphic relationships are missing. Such outcomes have considerable potential in interpreting the archaeology of Iceland and can be applied more widely to sites with similar chronological constraints.
People and Space in the Middle Ages, 300-1300, 2006
In the period when feudal institutions were at their height, these non-feudal societies on the fr... more In the period when feudal institutions were at their height, these non-feudal societies on the fringes of the West were certainly not unfamiliar with the dependence of the small farmer (whether slave, freedman or free man) upon a richer man than himself, or the devotion of the companion to the prince or the leader of the war-band. But they had nothing which recalled the vast, hierarchically organized system of peasant subjection and military vassalage to which we give the name feudalism. 1 In the study of early medieval Europe, Scandinavia ...
Viking and Medieval Scandinavia, 2007
I t is a view of long standing that before the political turmoil of the thirteenth century, polit... more I t is a view of long standing that before the political turmoil of the thirteenth century, political power in Iceland was in the hands of a uniformly free and independent class of farmers. These farmers are not only supposed to have owned their own farms by and large, they are also supposed to have had political influence through a system of near-democratic assemblies and through their freedom to associate themselves with whichever chieftain they chose. The chieftains are considered to have had relatively limited authority, their powers kept in check by each other and by the farmers' right to move their allegiance between chieftains.
Comparison of the distribution of pagan burials in Iceland with medieval information about the nu... more Comparison of the distribution of pagan burials in Iceland with medieval information about the number of farmers in different parts of the country allows a division of the country into three zones of low, medium and high frequency of pagan burials relative to the number of settlements. Possible explanations for these differences are briefly explored. This paper is a product of the project Death and burial in Iceland for 1150 years and sets out some of the problems it aims to solve.