ABSTRACT
A respected historian and archaeologist at the University of Lille, Lebecq has published extensively on early medieval trade. In this article Lebecq turns to the famous grave of the Frankish king Childeric. Childeric, whose son Clovis (reigned 482–511) established the fortunes of the Merovingian monarchy and kingdom, died ca. 482 and was buried near Tournai (see Map 4) which was very near the northernmost Roman frontier in Gaul. Lebecq examines the artifacts found in Childeric’s grave and invites his readers to reflect on whether Childeric was more barbarian or Roman. He clearly manipulated the symbols of both. Why? What “audience” was there for Childeric’s “show”? What do Childeric’s grave-goods suggest about the assimilation of barbarians and Romans along the frontier? How does this article contribute to the on-going discussion of accommodation? Does this article open any perspectives on ethnogenesis?
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