Foundations of Gold and Silver

The monetary economy was at a low ebb in the early Middle Ages (5th to 12th centuries), yet it persisted: people continued to think in terms of monetary units, and - even if often on a small scale - exchanged gold and silver pieces that gave physical form to those units. This project goes beyond recent assessments of the period that have focused on the limited scale of the currency to ask why it survived at all through the end of the western Roman Empire, the rise of new kingdoms and empires, and the viking threat. Answers will be sought in the unique role coined currency played as an intermediary between power and economy. To make coins, or to engage in use of them either by choice or compulsion, was a highly meaningful act at a time of relative scarcity. In other words, it is not just a matter of how many coins there were in circulation: it is a matter of why people chose to make and use them at all, and what the consequences were of doing so. I will use coins to consider the human interactions behind them, and argue that coined money was widely used to construct or redefine social ties of diverse kinds, such as assertions of dominance, demonstrations of equality and many others. Minting was a facet of power structures and status as well as economy, while changes in social relations could affect use of (and demand for) coined money - and vice versa. The results of this research will be a major contribution to early medieval economic and social history, arguing for a new way of looking at monetisation in early medieval Europe. To show how the role of coin developed over time and space, I will bring together a wide range of source materials: coins, the contextual information about coin-finds, and texts of diverse kinds. These will be approached by comparing five regions across western Europe, chosen to represent different profiles of coin production and use during this period: eastern England, northwest Francia, the Rhineland and Rhine mouth, central and northern Italy and southern Scandinavia. In this project I will capitalise on my extensive experience in researching aspects of monetary history to produce an important new interpretation of the early medieval economy, and establish a position as a leading voice in the field. My findings will be encapsulated in a monograph published by Princeton University Press, and in an edited volume of essays arising from a symposium of leading experts to be held at King's College London. My leadership position will be further consolidated in the second year of the project with a suite of interlinked impact and outreach activities that package the themes and conclusions of the research for wider public consumption. These activities will be directed towards members of the public interested in the Middle Ages, towards the community of collectors and metal-detector users, and towards policymakers responsible for treasure finds in several European countries. An exhibition will be held at the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge, drawing on its world-leading collection of medieval coinage, and on its strong record of successful displays of material from this period. It will be supported with a series of lectures and other events for the public and schoolchildren. A workshop will be held in the Fitzwilliam at the beginning of this exhibition on the theme of how different laws and policies in the modern world affect interpretation of early medieval coin-finds. Attendees and speakers will be drawn from across Europe, and will represent multiple interest groups, including scholars, collectors and metal-detector users, and policymakers. Dialogue at this workshop will consider different perspectives, and result in recommendations for best practice. These recommendations will be presented (along with key policy and contact information relating to medieval coin-finds) on a publicly available website.