Product description
These detailed scale weights are modelled exactly after original bronze weights from the Viking Age, with each weight precisely measuring 2, 4, 6, and 10 grams. Viking folding scales, which emerged in the second half of the 9th century, spread rapidly throughout the Baltic region.The use of these scales required corresponding weights, which arrived in the north alongside the folding scales through the flow of silver from Arabian regions. To employ the scales, silver (either in the form of coins or silver bullion) was placed in one pan, whilst the appropriate bronze weight was added to the other side until the scale balanced.
Viking scale weights typically came in three forms: cubooctahedron weights, which were cube-shaped with cut-off corners and had dots or punched circles to indicate their weight; ball zone weights, which were spherical with flattened top and bottom sections and decorative dots; and double-zone weights, which were conical in shape and appeared more often at the turn of the 10th to 11th century. Despite the lack of centralised authority, the Vikings managed to standardise weight measurements, though some merchants utilised personal weight systems. Early Viking weights were crafted from iron covered with a thin bronze or copper alloy skin, but by the late 10th century, weights were typically constructed entirely from copper alloys such as bronze.
