'The Bryggen Papers' present results based on the archaeological material from the excavations at Bryggen and other medieval and early sites in the town of Bergen. Known as an Episcopal see and regional royal administrative and residential centre, Bergen developed in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries into the first truly international trading centre of Scandinavia and one of the most important ports of northern Europe, at the same time becoming the first capital of the Norwegian kingdom. The Hanseatic League established one of its four main trading stations or Kontor in Bergen around 1360, lasting into the latter part of the eighteenth century.
This volume of the Main Series of the Bryggen Papers concerns children and how child-related objects from archaeological contexts can illuminate children’s presence and everyday life in medieval Bergen. By analysing physical remains reflecting children’s games, behaviour and clothing, the author has been able to provide new information and shed new light on the everyday life of children in a medieval town, and thereby indirectly also on the demographic and social organisation. The study also relates to the wider discussion of how childhood was perceived in the Middle Ages and how children at different stages of childhood were treated.
Author(s): Sigrid Samset Mygland
Series: The Bryggen Papers. Main Series, 7
Publisher: Fagbokforlaget
Year: 2007
Language: English
Pages: 114
City: Bergen
FOREWORD 5
1. INTRODUCTION 9
Approaches 11
The source material and area of research 12
State of research 15
2. THEORETICAL AND METHODOLOGICAL APPROACHES 19
Children and childhood in time and space – the child as a social construct 19
Methodological approaches 20
Identification 20
Classification 22
Dating of the artefacts 23
Spatial analysis 24
Representativity 24
3. TOYS – IDENTIFICATION AND DATING 27
Musical objects or noisemakers 27
Bone buzzers 27
Ocarinas 28
Rattles 28
Toys reflecting role-playing games 29
Dolls 29
Other human figures 31
Tools and domestic utensils 32
Toy weapons 33
Boats 36
Animal figures 38
Toys related to board games and sports/physical activities 41
Skates 41
Balls 41
Humming tops 42
Yo-yos 43
Marbles 43
Toys – summary 44
Chronology of the toys 44
General chronology 45
Dating the musical objects or noisemakers 47
Dating the toys reflecting role-playing games 48
Dating the toys related to board games and sports/physical activities 49
Temporal representation 49
Types of games – gender and age 52
Medieval toys from Bergen – an evaluation 54
4. CHILDREN’S SHOES 57
Limitations 57
Shoes and physiology 58
Classifications 59
Ordinary sole types from the Gullskoen area 61
Atypical sole from the Gullskoen area 63
Sole types from the Gullskoen area–summary 65
Distribution of sole types 65
Male or female shoes? 69
Soles from the Gullskoen area – tendencies 69
The presence and perception of children 70
All children’s soles from Bergen 70
Chronology 71
Chronology of the soles from the Gullskoen area 71
Chronology of all soles from Bergen 76
Children’s soles – an evaluation 79
5. TRACES OF CHILDREN 81
Holmen 81
Bryggen 81
The Bryggen excavation (BRM 0) 82
Other excavations at Bryggen 92
The Bryggen area – an overall evaluation 96
Øvregaten/Stretet (BRM 11 and BRM 94) 96
Vågsbotn (BRM 20, BRM 25, BRM 106, BRM 200, BRM 245, BRM 274, BRM 333, BRM 346, BRM 462 and BRM 544) 97
Strandsiden (BRM 7) 97
Child-related artefacts in Bergen – an overall evaluation 98
Bryggen 98
Bergen in general 100
6. CONCLUSIONS 101
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 104
BIBLIOGRAPHY 105
LIST OF FIGURES 111
LIST OF TABLES 113
