Why the king needed his own goldsmith

Abstract

The paper gives a summary of rhe ongoing project to discern the function of royal goldsmiths in Svealand. The general prerequisites of royal goldsmith are dis­cussed and the importance of the goldsmith's role in non-monetary societies underlined. Garnet jewellery in general seems to belong to the gifts given at royal level and it is suggested that the similarities between the garnet cloisonné of Svea­land and Gotland emerges from the work having been produced in a Svea royal workshop organisation. On Gotland these products are only found in the early Vendel period whereas later the garnet cloisonne use another type of cement oth­erwise found in Denmark.
The close relations between Svealand and Gotland also found on a type of small equal armed brooch,made of bronze, frequently found in Svealand but also occurring on Gotland. A detailed study revealed that the Gotlandic brooche may have been produced in Svealand. Jewellery made of guilded bronze (instead of using silver as on the continent) is a typical Scandinavian trait found into late Viking age. lt might be that the persistent use of bronze alloys is due co rhe facr that bronze was considered a regal metal.