ABSTRACT
Around the middle of the eighth century the Scandinavians became involved in increasing warfare, trade and cultural contacts with areas all around Scandinavia. These changes also had an impact on handicrafts. Factors such as the increasing use of raw materials, the rise of towns to become new places for craftspeople to dwell in, and intensified trade, made the craftspeople and their products more important for the society. Some parts of the handicrafts did however change slowly. These contrasts between ‘sudden’ changes and long-lived technology and tradition make handicraft a problematic term as it covers a wide range of different activities and specialities. Some of them altered quickly, depending on changes in fashion, trading routes and politics. Others remained the same for centuries, because of strong traditions and stagnant technology.
