”Bara spik” – Potentialen hos arkeologiska fynd av byggnadsjärn

Abstract

Although finds of nailsand fittings are common from urban, early modern archaeological sites, they are rarelyused in the interpretations of the excavated buildings. These finds are often poorly do-cumented and they seldom get preserved once the excavation report is completed. Thismeans that the finds in many cases cannot be used in future research projects.In this article, we discuss the potential of these types of artefacts in research on earlymodern buildings and house construction. We furthermore discuss what would be requi-red in the handling of the material in order for it to be used as a general resource.