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This paper will explore the archaeological, historical and iconographical evidence for the development of standardisation at early medieval marketplaces in the Viking Age along the trade routes of the Baltic and Eastern Europe. ‘Commodity money’ and ‘fiat money’, together with the standardisation of commodities and traded goods will be discussed in the wider context of the mechanisms of trade and exchange.

Dr Monika Maleszka-Ritchie has a background in archaeology and heritage interpretation. Monika obtained an MA (Hons) in Archaeology from the Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań and a PhD in Archaeology from the University of York, where she studied Viking Age trade and exchange around the Baltic and North Sea regions. The thesis blended archaeological research undertaken throughout the Baltic Sea region with historical and iconographical research of early medieval northwest European and Islamic texts. She is currently working in the University of the Highlands and Islands in Inverness (UHI Inverness). Her current research interests include the early medieval economy of central, eastern, and northern Europe; the interaction between Slavs, Vikings, and Arabs on the early medieval trade routes of eastern Europe; and the theory, method and practice of archaeological learning, heritage outreach and presentation.

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