Permanency in Early Medieval Emporia: Reassessing Ribe

Abstract

This article seeks to demonstrate the permanent character of at least parts of the marketplace in Ribe (Denmark) from the first decades of its existence at the beginning of the eighth century. As with other early medieval emporia in northern Europe, it has been debated whether the marketplace was a permanent or seasonal site, the conclusion generally being that it would not have become permanently occupied until the AD 780s–790s. Although other markers of ‘urbanness’ can be found in the archaeological evidence from eighth-century Ribe, permanency is here considered as a decisive argument for its definition. Indeed, it is believed that it is through year-round, long-lasting occupation that a distinctively un-rural daily life could take shape. The material from the excavations conducted in 1985–1986 at Sct Nicolajgade 8 forms the empirical basis for this reassessment. By integrating artefacts in the contextual interpretation of the well-stratified deposits that characterize the archaeology of the marketplace, it is possible to identify several markers of permanency (site foundation, domestic life, and houses). Among them, particular focus is put on houses, whose presence at the site has been the object of controversy in previous research. By reconsidering the evidence and by comparing it to house finds from contemporary urban sites in northwestern Europe, former statements about the presence of houses at the marketplace in Ribe are challenged.