Dublin

The modern capital of Ireland (Eire) was founded by the Vikings, or Norsemen, in the 9th century (c 831) and built on the ridge above the south bank of the river, the same spot where Dublin Castle was built. Throughout much of the Middle Ages it remained one of the foremost sea ports in the British Isles. Viking Dublin was a prosperous settlement, and excavations begun in the 1960s revealed a wealth of archaeological evidence for that period. From prehistoric times people have dwelt in the area about Dublin Bay, and four of Ireland's five great roads converged near the spot called Baile Atha Cliath (The Town of the Ford of the Hurdle). Remarkable waterlogged conditions have preserved organic material from levels dating to between the 9th-14th centuries. The footings of wattle-and-daub and timber-framed buildings have been recovered with door posts screens and hearths as well as timber streets. There is also abundant evidence of the crafts and industries from the Hiberno-Scandinavian and Anglo-Norman periods - woodworking metalworking hooping combmaking leatherworking and cobbling.

The city of Dublin, the modem capital of Eire, was founded by Norse settlers in the 9th century. Its position near the Liffey estuary provides a sheltered and defensible harbour, and througout much of the Middle Ages it remained one of the foremost sea ports in the British Isles. Excavations have been continuing for over a decade in many parts of the town. Remarkable waterlogged conditions have preserved organic material from levels dating to between the 9th and 14th centuries. The footings of wattle-and-daub and timberframed buildings have been recovered, with door posts, screens and hearths, as well as timber streets. There is also abundant evidence of the crafts and industries practised in the Hibemo-Scandinavian and Anglo-Norman periods; these include woodworking, metal-working, hooping, combmaking, leather-working and cobbling. Associated with these crafts were numerous items such as shoes, wooden bowls, soapstone bowls, and ornate objects like bone trial pieces decorated in Urnes and Ringerike style, a highly ornate Borre style disc brooch with pin, and an incised drawing of a ship on a piece of wood dating to the 11th century.