Transit Routes in Eastern Europe in the 9th to 11th Centuries

The reports of Arab geographers and numismatic data are combined in a review of the literature on two major transit trade routes in Eastern Europe: the Baltic-Caspian trade route and the route “from the Varangians [Scandinavians] to the Greeks [Byzantium].” Hoards of Arab silver coins, known as dirhems, along major water routes clearly point to the direction of the Baltic-Caspian route along the Volga, and date the earliest use of the route from the late 8th century. Trade along the route involved mainly the Volga Bulgars, Ugro-Finnic and Letto-Lithuanian tribes, but not the Slavs, as had earlier been supposed. The existence of the route from the Baltic to the Black Sea along the Dnieper River (“from the Varangians to the Greeks”) was reported by two 11th-century historians—an unidentified Russian chronicler and Adam of Bremen. The author rebuts recent suggestions that the Dnieper route was not as significant as commonly assumed.     

Historical Geography of Industry in the Cherepovets Country

The Cherepovets country has historically benefited from a favorable transport geography on the divide between major drainage basins. While the White Sea trade through Arkhangel'sk flourished, the region was situated at the intersection of south-north routes between Moscow and the White Sea and west-east routes between Novgorod and Vologda. After the rise of St. Petersburg, the economic-geographic situation of the region was reoriented toward the Baltic Sea. Industrial development in the region was fostered by the construction of the Tikhvin, Mariinsk and North Dvina waterways in the early 19th century. Metalworks and flour mills, based largely on long-haul raw materials, flourished in the first half of the 19th century. These industries declined when the construction of railroads deprived the region of its favorable transport situation on waterways, and lumbering, sawmills and paper and board production became the principal economic activities. Other industries that developed in the second half of the 19th century on a local raw-material base were glass works. In recent years the regional economy has been dominated by the huge modern iron and steel complex at Cherepovets.     

THE MIGRATION OF NORTHERN PEASANTS FROM THE 16th TO THE EARLY 18th CENTURY

Data from cadasters and censuses indicate that farmstead abandonment in Pomor'ye was slight before the middle of the 16th century, with migrants going from the European Center and Novgorod Land to western Pomor'ye, from western to eastern Pomor'ye, and later from eastern Pomor'ye to Siberia, attracted by the absence of manorial serfdom, the presence of the landsharing village, and the availability of arable land. From the late 16th century this process was intensified by the development of the White Sea route to Europe, the annexation of Siberia, and improvements in agricultural methods and implements. At the same time, farmstead abandonment increased in response to the economic crisis of Ivan IV's reign, and it increased even more from the late 17th century. Many northern peasants were mobilized by the state as soldiers or workers; many others fled to Siberia or went roaming. (The translation was prepared by James R. Gibson of York University, Toronto.)     

Provenancing Baltic timber from art historical objects: success and limitations

During the Middle Ages northern Belgium and The Netherlands were gradually deforested. A steadily rising demand for quality timber obliged merchants to look for new timber sources. From the 13th century onwards, large volumes of timber were imported from surrounding regions and, despite the remote supply area, merchants of the Hanseatic League managed to organize a huge timber trade from towns around the Baltic Sea.Trees from forests along the Vistula River seem to have been exported via Gdansk, first to Bruges and later to Antwerp. At their final destination the imported wood assortments were highly appreciated for shipbuilding and construction purposes, but also by woodcarvers and famous painters.Over the last decade dendrochronologists have established a dense network of historical site chronologies for northern and central Poland. These site chronologies are supposed to reflect local growth conditions and may allow the identification of the provenance of the wood of many art historical objects made out of Baltic timber.Tree-ring patterns of panel paintings and sculptures, mainly from the 14th–16th centuries, were measured and compared to this data set of site chronologies. An evaluation of the accuracy of sourcing medieval Baltic timbers using standard correlation techniques was made. The identification of provenance enriches historical information on logging activity and timber trade around the Baltic Sea during the Middle Ages.     

The Colonization of the Russian Barents Sea Coast (Mid-19th to Early 20th Century): Two Approaches to the Economic Development of the Area

This article deals with the early colonization of the Russian Barents Sea Coast (the so-called Murman Coast) in the middle of the 19th and early 20th century. It focuses mainly on the household economy and economic adaptation in the area by groups of Finnish, Russian, Karelian, Norwegian and Sami colonists. The opening up of the new territory by the colonists resulted partly in the employment of traditional methods of using natural resources and partly in the culture of these groups being transformed. Based on this, two different patterns of using natural resources were singled out within the ethnic groups that settled on the Murman Coast (western and eastern). These patterns were more suited to the new living conditions in each of the respective areas, and became the basis for different trends in the economic development of the Murman Coast.     

The Norse Settlement of the Faroe Islands

THIS ARTICLE is based upon archaeological evidence from Lübeck, the capital of the Hanseatic League on the Baltic Sea. Discussed are examples of the material culture and the environment of different socio-economic quarters of the town and their transformation between the 13th and the 16th century. Evidence of the town's topography, urban plots and house-building is presented, and of everyday life including handicrafts, trade and food supply.     

A TRADE ROUTE FROM THE PROPONTIS TO PHRYGIA: ASSESSING THE ECONOMIC STATUS OF KIOS BETWEEN THE ARCHAIC AND THE EARLY HELLENISTIC PERIODS

This article proposes a reassessment of the role that Kios played as a nexus of trade between the northern Aegean, the Black Sea and inland north-west Anatolia. The city was founded as an emporium at the end of the seventh century BC and joined the Delian League in the following century. The autonomous city was subsequently ruled by a Persian dynasty during the fourth century BC, while retaining its Greek identity. Three groups of ceramics will be analysed for this reassessment: one from rescue excavations at Kios itself; another from surveyed sites in the surrounding region; and a third from other excavated settlements. It is argued that both locally-produced fine wares and transport amphoras allow chronological periods to be traced to relatively high resolutions, and that these reveal Kios to have been a significant market town that was deeply involved in trade with the Aegean and the Black Sea.     

海贸与移民互动:17-18世纪闽南人移民海外原因分析--以闽南人移民台湾为例

17-18世纪是闽南人海外移民的高潮时期,也是台湾移民社会形成和发展时期.台湾移民以闽南人为主,可说是闽南社会在海峡对岸的延伸.推动闽南人移民海外的内因是明中叶以来的人口压力,而16世纪中叶欧人东来以后带动的商贸和东亚、东南亚沿海地区的开发使对中国商贩和劳力的需求大增,则是吸引闽南移民的拉力.在整个17-18世纪,始终存在着华人海上商贸和海外移民的互动.闽南人冒险、重商的人文精神,则是使这种推力与拉力作用得以实现的主观原因.17世纪20年代以来,由泉籍郑氏集团主导的海外华商网络和台湾开发则是台湾泉籍人多于漳籍人和泉籍人主导台湾商贸的主要原因,这与17-18世纪海外华商网络和华人社会以闽南人为主、闽南籍者又以泉府人居多是相一致的.     

17-19世纪中叶暹罗对外贸易中的华人

选择17至19世纪中叶暹罗对外贸易中的华人作为研究对象,分不同阶段,对其在暹罗的对外贸易活动进行了描述,对暹罗华人在暹罗对外贸易中的角色和作用进行了探讨。由此得出结论,华人在暹罗对外贸易中,利用其自身优势,逐渐成为主要参与者和经营者。他们通过对外贸易活动,发展了自己的商业,积累了财富,同时满足了暹罗王室对海外贸易的需求,享受到国王赐与的特权,为其在暹罗事业的发展打下基础。     

DID THE GREEKS GO TO COLCHIS FOR METALS?

A too simple understanding of the process of Greek colonisation, especially the reasons for it, sometimes leads modern scholars to unrealistic conclusions. This paper examines the view commonly found in the literature that the main reason for the arrival of the lonians in Colchis in the middle of the 6th century BC was the area's richness in metals. Archaeological material discussed here shows that Eastern Pontus was far from being so well endowed, and that the local tribes were less advanced in metallurgy than is often believed. The Scythian 'incursion'into Colchis at the end of the 7th century BC both introduced Colchians to iron metallurgy and gave rise to a lacuna in the material culture of the area. New tribes in the Eastern Black Sea in the middle of the 6th century BC revived the iron industry, but it never again reached the scale of production achieved in the 7th century BC. The involvement of the Greeks in iron metallurgy is a matter of which, so far, we know nothing. Nevertheless, the Greeks, trying to adapt their art to the tastes of the local rulers, established in Colchis in the 5th century BC schools of gold- and silver-smiths, as well as the production of metal seals and engraved gems.     

罗马帝国沿海路向东方的探索

罗马帝国沿海路向东方的探索,在大多数情况下是以红海水道为基地展开的,而帝国的繁荣则是罗马人航行东方的物质基础。公元一世纪,罗马人已注意到了印度与中国的贸易交往;公元二世纪,罗马人的活动范围扩展到孟加拉湾东海岸地区和整个印支半岛,并从海陆两路到达中国,同中国建立起了直接的贸易关系。希腊一罗马世界对中国的知识亦随之大为发展;公元三世纪末以后,随着帝国的衰落,特别是七世纪中叶阿拉伯伊斯兰势力的兴起,罗马人乃至整个欧洲从海路向东方的探索被完全阻断。罗马人沿海路向东方的探索,对古代中西海上丝绸之路的开通发挥了不可磨灭的作用。     

俄罗斯华侨华人与俄联邦的移民政策

20世纪末, 伴随着中俄改革的大潮, 大批中国人涌向了俄罗斯, 形成了一个不小的华侨华人群体, 他们为中俄两国的文化交流、贸易往来和经济发展做出了巨大贡献。本文试图求本溯源, 客观地去认识自17世纪中叶以来华侨华人在俄苏的历史, 揭示、反思新一代华侨华人在俄国的生存发展状态和社会历史背景及他们在俄罗斯各国移民中的地位, 分析不同阶层的俄罗斯人对华侨华人的不同看法和态度及俄罗斯联邦政府十多年来移民机构、移民政策的发展变化, 特别是针对中国人的政策变化, 以探讨在新的历史条件下, 华侨华人如何在俄罗斯这片热土上更好地发展, 从而为促进中俄两国人民的睦邻友好、加快两国的经济建设步伐做出更大贡献。     

LATE GALLEYS: The Fredriksvern Naval Shipyard and the coastal defence in Norway 1750–1814

From the early 18th century the Mediterranean galley experienced a new golden age in the Baltic Sea, as it was well adapted to the shallow sea with the islands and skerries found there. In Norway the Fredriksvern naval shipyard was founded in 1750 to build a galley fleet. For various reasons progress was slow, and when the galley fleet finally was built in the 1760s, it was probably the last one in Europe. New and more efficient inshore vessels were soon developed in the neighbouring countries, but they were not put into use in Norway in the 18th century. The explanation for Norway’s poor performance was probably too much peace: when Denmark-Norway became involved in the Napoleonic Wars, naval development was dramatically improved.     

The Unruly Buffer Zone

This article discusses the province of Ingria, part of Sweden from 1617 until 1704, and its position in the Swedish Kingdom in the late 17th century. The main purpose is to examine how Sweden implemented its centralization and unification policy in Ingria and what reactions it triggered at the local level. Court records and other administrative documents have been used as source material. Ingria was a borderland that was primarily of military importance for Sweden as a buffer zone against Russia. A strong defence was also essential in order to secure the profitable Russian transit trade, in which the Ingrian towns of Narva and Nyen played a pivotal role. Sweden’s centralization and unification policy, which peaked in the middle of the 1680s, aimed particularly at strengthening its military presence in Ingria. Resources were obtained by confiscating fiefs and later privatizing the administration of manors, to be handled by leaseholders. Tax farming resulted in peasant unrest, and eventually the Crown had to regulate the taxation. Ultimately, the Crown was not strong enough to carry out a coherent integration policy. Ingria remained a borderland province that formed a link between the core areas of Sweden and the Baltic provinces.     

Medieval Painted Pottery in South and Central Italy

DURING the 9th century unglazed pottery decorated with red or brown slip came into production along the middle Rhine. This pottery, known as Pingsdorf ware, was exported in large quantities to the North Sea region and even to the Baltic coast.² By the 12th century red-painted pottery, often imitating Pingsdorf ware, was made at a number of sites in the Low Countries and western France.³

It has long been known that painted pottery was manufactured throughout the medieval Islamic world, including north Africa, and isolated finds of painted ware have been published in Italy and Spain.⁴ Nevertheless, little attempt has been made to explore the possible connexions between painted pottery in the Mediterranean basin and western Europe,⁵ A serious obstacle to such an attempt is the inadequacy of most publications of Mediterranean finds. This paper offers an account of the painted wares in one area of the Mediterranean, peninsular Italy, and suggests that the pottery found there may indeed be related to the earliest painted wares north of the Alps. It must be emphasized, however, that the study of Italian medieval pottery is in its infancy and that the suggestions made here are of an entirely speculative nature.     

A Byzantine Shipwreck from Cape Stoba,Mljet, Croatia: an interim report

The Cape Stoba shipwreck is located on the seabed off the island of Mljet in Croatia at a depth of 21–28 m. Following initial investigation in 1975, four seasons of excavation have been carried between 2010 and 2014 by the Department for Underwater Archaeology of the Croatian Conservation Institute, joined by the Department of Studi Umanistici of the Università Ca' Foscari of Venice from 2012. The wreck‐site is evidenced by a cargo of nine amphora types dated to the 10th‐11th century AD, produced in the Eastern Mediterranean and Black Sea area, and glassware of Levantine production. The only direct evidence of the ship itself to date, is one iron anchor.     

The Sarmatians: The Creation of Archaeological Evidence

According to the general modern view the steppes of the northern Black Sea region, from the Danube to the Ural valleys, in the period from the third century BC to the mid‐third century AD, were inhabited by Sarmatian tribes using a burial mound rite. Several consecutive waves of Sarmatian peoples came to this territory from the East, conquering the local population. This view is based on the paradigmatic explanatory model, which has its roots in the history of the Russian Empire. However, the archaeological culture of the Volga–Don and Ural steppes, known as the ‘Sarmatian Motherland’, is apparently not related to the Sarmatians of the written sources. In addition, the culture of the northern Black Sea region features various kinds of archaeological monuments (settlements, votive depositions, kurgans, flat necropolises), which are characteristic of different cultural‐economic types. This demonstrates the complexity and diversity of the culture in the region, which could be influenced by many factors: the presence of Greek settlers on the northern shore of the Black Sea, the expansion of the Roman Empire, the pressure of nomadic tribes from the East, the advance of the Celtic–Thracian peoples from the West, changing environmental conditions, etc.     

Smolensk and the Varangians according to the archaeological data

The historical and archaeological sources from the Viking period which concern the city of Smolensk and the large cemetery at Gnyozdovo by the river Dnieper are discussed.

The author examines the most important find groups and grave types and asserts that extremely few specific Scandinavian traits are to be found.

His conclusion is that Smolensk was founded by the Slavs before the Gnyozdovo cemetery was established. The fact that only a few Scandinavian graves are known from the tenth century and none from the ninth and eleventh must mean that only small groups of Scandinavians had settled in the Smolensk area and these were rapidly assimilated with the Slav groups.