Networks of Gold Circulation
Gothic Elites and Mercenary Mobility Based on the Trąbki Hoard, NE Poland
Anna Zapolska
- Pages: approx. 203 p.
- Size:216 x 280 mm
- Illustrations:2 b/w, 38 col., 20 tables b/w.
- Language(s):English
- Publication Year:2027
- € 70,00 EXCL. VAT RETAIL PRICE
- ISBN: 978-2-503-62595-9
- Hardback
- Forthcoming (Apr/27)
- ISBN: 978-2-503-62596-6
- E-book
- Forthcoming
*How to pre-order?
Anna Zapolska is an archaeologist and numismatist at the University of Warsaw. Her research focuses on Roman coin finds, particularly their archaeological contexts, the theory of value, and the functions of coins within Barbarian communities. She combines numismatic analysis with theoretical approaches to gain deeper insights into both numismatic and archaeological material.
The circulation of Late Roman and Early Byzantine solidi and gold has long drawn the attention of archaeologists and numismatists. While there has been intensive research into gold from the Roman Empire and its provinces, and from Scandinavia, however, the finds from Central Barbaricum — broadly corresponding to present-day Poland — have so far remained on the margins of this research. This volume brings them to the foreground by presenting the first omprehensive study of the Trąbki hoard, the second-largest solidus deposit known from the region.
Through an interdisciplinary approach that combines numismatic, archaeological, and historical perspectives, this book addresses the subject of why gold reappeared in Central Barbaricum after circa a century of absence, exploring which channels may have directed it into the Vistula delta, and how its accumulation can be related to wider social and demographic transformations that occurred during the Migration Period. The Trąbki hoard is analysed alongside material from the Western Roman Empire, the Danube provinces, and the remaining parts of Central and Eastern Barbaricum to provide a comparative framework that highlights both local particularities and broader European patterns. Through this approach, new light is shed on the role played by Roman gold in shaping this northern frontier of the late antique world.
List of Illustrations
Chapter 1. Introduction
Chapter 2. The Trąbki Hoard and Its Context — Discovery and Subsequent Fate
Chapter 3. Methodology
Chapter 4. The Oldest Coins from the Deposit — Aureus and First Solidi
Chapter 5. Fifth-century Solidi from the Trąbki Hoard
Chapter 6. Analogies and Discussion
Chapter 7. Archaeological Situation
Chapter 8. The Trąbki Hoard and Its Social Dimensions: Elites, Memory, and Networks in Migration-Period Central Europe
Chapter 9. Trąbki hoard – The Broader Archaeological Context
Chapter 10. Catalogue
Afterword. Rethinking the Early Migration Period: The Trąbki Hoard in Perspective
Abbreviations
Works Cited
Index of Geographical Names