This study re-examines the Grobiņa archaeological complex (the mid-7th to the mid-9th centuries AD), a type of settlement featuring a hillfort and associated cemeteries in Latvia, by moving beyond the prevailing ‘narratives of Scandinavian colonisation’. Placing Grobiņa within the wider context of Eastern Baltic coastal interaction zones, the analysis highlights the hillfort-settlement-cemetery complex and personal adornments (e.g. disc-on-bow, beak-shaped, tool and box brooches), exemplifying long-term transculturation rather than simple colonisation or assimilation. The selective ‘adaptation’ and re-contextualisation of some Scandinavian artefacts alongside local Baltic elements reveal a community actively negotiating its identity through these emulative practices. Rather than being seen as ‘passive ethnic markers’, these artefacts could be considered ‘active media’ in the negotiation of identities within a ‘middle ground colonisation’ (Mägi, 2018). Reflecting on the Grobiņa case study, the paper reveals that it represents neither full assimilation, but rather a transcultural hub within the wider Baltic and Scandinavian interaction zones. Lastly, it also makes us think about how other ‘isolated’ archaeological objects from ‘Viking East’ sites (e.g., the silver and copper alloy brooches from Kyivan Rus’ hillforts) can be contextualised within the wider sphere of early medieval interaction.

First Author: Alla Kurzenkova

Keywords:
‘Viking East’
Grobiņa
Eastern Baltic Coastal Interactions
Transculturation
Identity
Emulative practices