| title: | With Mind and Hand. Studies Ancient Technology in Archaeology (iron and textiles) |
|---|---|
| reg no: | ETF6110 |
| project type: | Estonian Science Foundation research grant |
| status: | accepted |
| institution: | Institute of History |
| head of project: | Jüri Peets |
| duration: | 01.01.2005 - 31.12.2008 |
| description: | The project "With Mind and Hand. Studies of Ancient Technology in Archaeology (iron and textiles)" is designed to be bipartite. The aim of the first part is to continue the research into the problems connec-ted with ancient metallurgy in Estonia. Completely new, and the first in Estonia, will be the establis-hing of the origin of metal used in weapons with pattern-welded blades (spearheads, swords) by the methods of natural sciences. The study will be based on finding out the peculiarities of local raw materials, and comparing these results with the results of the analyses of artefacts. The main research method will still be metallographic analysis of small samples. In the prepared sample the chemical composition of slag sulendid containing in it will be analysed, particularly their content of mangan and phosphor (the content of each of these varies considerably in different regions). It will make possible to establish the origin of metal. Alongside with artefacts with pattern-welded blades, other objects (knives, axes, medieval firearms, etc.) will also be similarly analysed. I also intend to continue investigations of sites connected with ancient iron-working (the smithy site of Käku, the iron-smelting site of Puiato, etc.) The second part of the project is going to be dedicated to studies of ancient textiles, the major part of which consists of the numerous medieval textile finds recovered from Estonian towns in recent years. To distinguish local production from imported one, the textile-technical study and comparative-statistical analysis of medieval material together with textiles from graves and hoards is vital. The solution of the Estonian side of the problem is important, and hopefully also resultant, first of all because analogous studies are presently carried out in Finland (the medieval textiles of Turku), Sweden, England (the York textiles of the Viking Age and the Middle Ages). Besides, the medieval textiles of Ribe, Haithabu, Novgorod and Gdansk and grave finds of Latvia have been exhaustively investigated. Since the research methods of textile technology have been lately unified everywhere, the results of analysis are also comparable in absolute values. Bringing Estonian medieval textiles into scientific circulation will fill a substantial gap in understanding of life, habits, handicrafts and trade of the medieval towns of the Baltic region. The intended studies in both parts of the project are the first in Estonia by research subject and the methods. |
| project group | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| no | name | institution | position | |
| 1. | Jüri Peets | Institute of History | senior researcher | |
| 2. | Priidu Peetsalu | Tallinn Technical University | assistant | |