NOW: Nidaros Stocking N11979

Having had an excuse to go to Norway, I had to go to Trondheim to see our next Nalbound Object of the Week. Found in a pre-1300 CE context, the Nidaros stocking is one of the earliest knee length nalbound stockings found.

The stocking is laid out horizontally with the upper portion of the foot to the left of the photograph, toe up. The leg still has folds, but likely reached the knee. A high resolution photo is available via the link in the online catalog. Photo: Ole-Aleksander Ulvik, NTNU Vitenskapsmuseet CC BY-SA 4.0

Object: Nidaros Stocking

Description: A nearly complete full stocking from toes to the knee. The sock shows heavy fulling, though if that was intentional or from wear or find circumstances is unknown. There are 4 holes that show evidence of compression near them. The areas away from the holes are a significantly darker color, have a layer of fibers obscuring the nalbinding, and are noticeably stiffer and not flexible.

Dated to: medieval,1 pre-13002

Find location: Field S of the Søndre Gate 4 dig in medieval Nidaros, modernly Trondheim, Norway. More specifically it was found under the floorboards of a pre-1300 house in the wealthy blocks of the city.3

Material: wool4

Stitch(es) used: Further examination is necessary given the condition of the textile. However, the surface texture most closely resembles the stitch known as Dalby, F1 UOU/OUOO.

Inventory number: N11979

Current location: NTNU Vitenskapsmuseet

Link to museum catalog or other data: https://www.unimus.no/portal/#/things/c72c7d23-f49f-4c0b-9bf8-dd67f4fb111e

Some sources in which more information can be found:

In 2020, there was a Facebook post by the Nidaros Archaeological Archive (NIDARK) project with a photograph of the stocking and some information regarding its excavation. I’d share it with you, but within this last year, that post has since disappeared along with all of the rest of the NIDARK Facebook page posts. Nonetheless, that project and its posts led me to this fabulous artifact.

Photographs:

Acknowledgements: My sincerest thanks to the NTNU Vitenskapsmuseet and especially to Torkel Johansen, Curator, and Frances Lucas Lukezic, Conservator for their assistance during my study visit.

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  1. The museum catalog states Medieval, Modern Era https://www.unimus.no/portal/#/things/c72c7d23-f49f-4c0b-9bf8-dd67f4fb111e Accessed 30 March 2024. ↩︎
  2. Per discussions with Torkel Johansen, curator at the Institutt for arkeologi og kulturhistorie, NTNU Vitenskapsmuseet during my study visit on 16 April 2024. ↩︎
  3. Per discussions with Torkel Johansen, curator at the Institutt for arkeologi og kulturhistorie, NTNU Vitenskapsmuseet during my study visit on 16 April 2024. ↩︎
  4. Gjenstandsbeskrivelse https://www.unimus.no/portal/#/things/c72c7d23-f49f-4c0b-9bf8-dd67f4fb111e Accessed 6 May 2024. ↩︎

NOW: Saqqâra sock T 564

For this week’s Nalbound Object of the Week we get to get to see what is thought to be the earliest archaeological artifact to have its stitch analyzed, a sock from Egypt. Photos of nalbinding from the late 1800’s are rather rare. In this case, we also have the opportunity to see a more recent photo in the online catalog of the MAK in Vienna.

Fig. 28 from Antike Handarbeiten published in 1895.

Object: Sock from Saqqâra, Egypt

Description: A white wool sock with a black/dark brown toe and over the arch worked in a finer black/dark brown wool and a row of red wool at the cuff. The sock has a single wedge style heel and stops at the ankle. Current photos show that it has taken some damage since 1895 as the dark toe is nearly entirely missing and several rows near the cuff also show damage. Otherwise, it is in apparently the same position as it was when the first photograph was taken.

Dated to: 6th century

Find location: Saqqâra, Egypt

Earliest diagrams of nalbinding as analyzed from an artifact. Figs. 30-32 from Antike Handarbeiten published in 1895. Highlights by Anne Marie Decker

Material: Wool

Stitch(es) used: Mammen, F2 UOO/UUOO. Luise Schinnerer diagrammed the stitch found in this sock, but did so in a manner that while it produces the correct final structure, is opposite the direction in which we work this stitch today.

Inventory number: T 564

Current location: Museum für angewandte Kunst MAK (Museum of Applied Arts)

Link to museum catalog or other data: https://sammlung.mak.at/sammlung_online?id=collect-107622

Some sources in which more information can be found:

Schinnerer, Luise. Antike Handarbeiten. Mit einer histor. Einleitung von Alois Riegl. Wien: Waldheim, 1895. [No ISBN]

Collin, Maria; ‘Sydda vantar’ in Fataburen; 1917; pgs. 71-78.

Noever, Peter ed. Verletzliche Beute: spätantike und frühislamische Textilien aus Ägypten = Fragile remnants : Egyptian textiles of late antiquity and early Islam. on the occasion of the “Verletzliche Beute/Fragile remnants exhibition” MAK Vienna, 07.12.2005-05.06.2006 Ostfildern-Ruit: Hatje Cantz, 2005. ISBN 3-7757-1699-8.

Gagneux-Granade, Marguerite, and Anastasia Ozoline. “Quelques objets surprenants en textile non tissé dans les réserves du musée Bénaki” in ΜΟΥΣΕΙΟ ΜΠΕΝΑΚΗ 9, 2009 (Athens 2010): 99-111. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.12681/benaki.13

Photographs: You can see a much more recent photo of the sock in the MAK’s online catalog: https://sammlung.mak.at/sammlung_online?id=collect-107622

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NOW: Kransen sock fragments 34821

The famous sock from Uppsala is not the only nalbinding found in Uppsala. This week’s Nalbound Object of the Week are the fragments of what is believed to be another sock. This one found in the Kransen quarter of Uppsala. I was graciously allowed access to examine these fragments at the Statens Historiska Museet in May of 2023. Some of what you see in the box is moss.

Image of the fragments of 34821, cropped to remove excess background.
Upphov: Rosengren, Helena, Historiska museet/SHM (CC BY 4.0)

Object: Kransen sock fragments

Description: Nine fragments of what is believed to be a sock.1

Dated to: end of the 1300’s2 (late 14th century)

Find location: Kransen quarter, Uppsala, in the block between Svartbacksgatan, St Persgatan, Dragarbrunnsgatan, and Vaksalagatan3 https://www.uppsala.se/contentassets/97d6ed912b5047a0aed22a7ceea06de0/plankarta.pdf (Thank you Ingela Andersson Lindberg for finding the plans)

Material: Wool4

Stitch(es) used: unknown

Inventory number: 34821

Current location: Historiska Museet, Stockholm

Link to museum catalog or other data: https://samlingar.shm.se/object/7216C35F-20E1-45BC-89FC-392CD84EBB34

Some sources in which more information can be found:

Gustafsson, Jan Helmer, and Ola Ehn. Kransen: ett medeltida kvarter i Uppsala. Uppsala: Upplands fornminnesfören, 1984. ISBN 91-85618-21-7.

Photographs (if permissions allow):

Please note that sharing to other venues will likely be intermittent. If you wish to receive these each week, please remember to follow the blog.
Patrons on Patreon receive early access previews, occasional extra details, and priority requests.

  1. https://samlingar.shm.se/object/7216C35F-20E1-45BC-89FC-392CD84EBB34 ↩︎
  2. Gustafsson, Jan Helmer, and Ola Ehn. Kransen: ett medeltida kvarter i Uppsala. Uppsala: Upplands fornminnesfören, 1984. Pg. 76. ISBN 91-85618-21-7. ↩︎
  3. Gustafsson, Jan Helmer, and Ola Ehn. Kransen: ett medeltida kvarter i Uppsala. Uppsala: Upplands fornminnesfören, 1984. Pg. 8. ISBN 91-85618-21-7. ↩︎
  4. https://samlingar.shm.se/object/7216C35F-20E1-45BC-89FC-392CD84EBB34 ↩︎

NOW: Pair of Red Socks from Oxryhyncus 2085&A-1900

Our next Nalbound Object of the Week can be found on display in the V&A Museum in London. A rare example of a complete pair of Late Roman Era1 (formerly dated to the Coptic Era2) nalbound socks from the burial grounds of the Greek colony of Oxryhyncus in Egypt. By the 5th century, Oxryhyncus was a notable monastic center.3

The socks after being placed on conservation mounts to support the fabric. (Conservation mounts are not intended to be the equivalent shape as the feet upon which they were intended to be worn as that would strain the fabric.) © Victoria and Albert Museum, London use of Content is permitted up to 5 years from first day of publication as per V&A Websites Terms & Conditions.

Object: Pair of Red socks from Oxryhyncus

Pre-conservation showing standard proportions. © Victoria and Albert Museum, London use of Content is permitted up to 5 years from first day of publication as per V&A Websites Terms & Conditions.

Description: A complete pair of red socks on red conservation mounts. The socks have split toes to accommodate wearing with thonged sandals. The ankles have an overlapping slit and the remains of attached ties for closure.

The conservation mounts and foreshortening of photographs tend to cause these socks to look much thinner and longer than they actually are. The conservation mounts are rounder than a foot which narrows the profile. They are intended to be supportive of the fabric more than providing a foot shape that would stress the fabric. As can be seen in the photographs prior to conservation, the proportions are well within the average ratios for this type of sock and would have fit a normal human foot quite nicely.

Dated to: 250-420 CE4 Cal. years (95.4%)5

Find location: Oxryhyncus (modern Behneseh), Egypt6

Material: S3Z 3-ply Wool7

Nalbinding Stitch(es) used: S-crossed8 Cross-knit Looping, F1B1 U (specific determination confirmed by Anne Marie Decker)

A pair of madder red socks confirming a theory regarding a particular construction detail on the Oxryhyncus socks. Completed by Anne Maire Decker on 17 August 2020. Not to gauge.

Inventory number: Accession number 2085&A-19009

Current location: V&A South Kensington, UK

Link to museum catalog or other data: https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O107787/pair-of-socks-unknown/

Some sources in which more information can be found:

Burnham, Dorothy K. “Coptic Knitting: An Ancient Technique” in Textile History, Vol. 3 December 1972. edited by K. G. Ponting and Dr S. D. Chapman. The Pasold Research Fund LTD, England, 1972; pgs. 116-124. No ISBN/ISSN provided. DOI: 10.1179/004049672793692237

De Moor, Antoine, Cäcilia Fluck, M. Van Strydonck, and M. Boudin. “Radiocarbon dating of Late Roman woolen socks from Egypt,” In Textiles, tools and techniques of the 1st millennium AD from Egypt and neighbouring countries. Proceedings of the 8th conference of the research group ‘Textiles from the Nile Valley,’ Antwerp, 4-6 October 2013, ed. Antoine De Moor, Cäcilia Fluck, and Petra Linscheid, p. 131-136. Tielt: Lannoo Publishers, 2015. ISBN 9789401432405.

Kendrick, A. F. Catalogue of Textiles From Burying-Grounds in Egypt: Vol. II. Period of Transition and of Christian Emblems. Victoria and Albert Museum, Department of Textiles. London: Publ. under the Authority of His Majesty’s Stationery Office, 1921. No ISBN.

Köstner, Barbara. “Roman and Late Roman nalbinding socks from Egypt: Bringing ‘Egyptian fashion’ to the North” in Excavating, analysing, reconstructing: Textiles of the first millennium AD from Egypt and neighbouring countries. Proceedings of the 9th conference of the research group ‘Textiles from the Nile Valley’, Antwerp, 27-29 November 2015. ed. by Antoine De Moor, Cäcilia Fluck, and Petra Linscheid. Tielt: Lannoo Publishers, 2017. ISBN 9789401443999.

Köstner, Barbara. “Wearing socks in sandals: The height of Roman fashion?” in Small Finds & Ancient Social Practices in the Northwest Provinces of the Roman Empire edited by Stefanie Hoss and Alissa Whitmore. Oxford & Philadelphia: Oxbow Books, 2016. Pages 16-27. ISBN 978-1-78570-256-3.

Levey, S. M. “Illustrations of the History of Knitting Selected from the Collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum” in Textile History, Vol. I No. 2 (December 1969): pgs. 183-205. ed. by K. G. Ponting. Great Britain: David & Charles Ltd., 1969. Also available in the combined Vol 1. Nos 1-3 set published in 1971 as ISBN 0-7153-5166-4.

Turnau, Irena. History of Knitting Before Mass Production. Translated by and Agnieszka Szonert. Warsaw: Institute of the Archaeology and Ethnology Polish Academy of Sciences, 1991. ISBN 83-900213-2-3.

Photographs:

The socks on display in the V&A. Photo credit: Anne Marie Decker 15 October 2019
A view of the toes and slits. Also note how the angle at which the photos are taken affects the perception of length. Photo credit: Anne Marie Decker 15 October 2019.
A side view showing better proportions. Photo credit: Anne Marie Decker 15 October 2019.
Anne Marie Decker taking photographs of the pair of red socks. Photo credit: Ruth Decker 15 October 2019.

Please note that sharing to other venues will likely be intermittent. If you wish to receive these each week, please remember to follow the blog.
Patrons on Patreon receive early access previews, occasional extra details, and priority requests.

  1. De Moor et. al. “Radiocarbon dating of Late Roman woolen socks from Egypt,” 2015. Pg. 136 ↩︎
  2. The dating to Coptic Era was based on older art historical dating methods. It generally referred to what are now defined as Late Roman Egypt (3rd−4th centuries) and Byzantine Egypt (4th−7th centuries), but differed in exact dating by author. While still used colloquially, the term has lost favor in academia in large part due to its imprecision. ↩︎
  3. https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O107787/pair-of-socks-unknown/ Accessed 21 January 2024. ↩︎
  4. https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O107787/pair-of-socks-unknown/ Accessed 21 January 2024. ↩︎
  5. De Moor et. al. “Radiocarbon dating of Late Roman woolen socks from Egypt,” 2015. Pg. 134. ↩︎
  6. https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O107787/pair-of-socks-unknown/ Accessed 21 January 2024. ↩︎
  7. https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O107787/pair-of-socks-unknown/ Accessed 21 January 2024 specifies 3-ply wool. Barbara Köstner lists S3Z in “Roman and Late Roman nalbinding socks from Egypt: Bringing ‘Egyptian fashion’ to the North” 2017, pg. 192. ↩︎
  8. https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O107787/pair-of-socks-unknown/ Accessed 21 January 2024. The museum record only states “Nålbindning (sewing stitches)” “sometimes called knotless netting or single needle knitting.” It does not specify the specific stitch variant used. Barbara Köstner does specify S crossed in “Roman and Late Roman nalbinding socks from Egypt: Bringing ‘Egyptian fashion’ to the North” 2017, pg. 193. ↩︎
  9. https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O107787/pair-of-socks-unknown/ Accessed 21 January 2024. ↩︎

NOW: Dura-Europos Patterned Fragment 1933.483

The patterned fragment from Dura-Europos has always fascinated me, so today it too joins the Nalbound Object of the Week collection. The fragment was excavated by the Yale-French Excavations at Dura-Europos sometime between 1928–37. It is only 5 7/8 by 6 11/16 in. (15 × 17 cm). Given the standard ratios of socks of this type and analysis of the fragment itself, what remains is 3/4 of the original circumference of the sock ankle.

Anne Marie Decker’s theoretical reconstruction of what the Dura-Europos patterned fragment may have looked like when the sock was whole based on standard ratios found in examinations of socks worked in Cross-knit Looping found in Egypt and surrounding regions. The fragment itself is in the background.

Object: Patterned fragment from Dura-Europos

Description: The patterned heel cup and ankle of a fancy Cross-knit Looping sock. The pattern consists of a vertical column of knit wales followed by a purl background with two pomegranate shapes placed one over the other (one is missing). Then another vertical column, a tree of life pattern that goes up the center back of the sock, and another vertical column. This is followed by another purl background with two pomegranates and ending with a final vertical column. The fragment has a few perpendicular stitches on the bottom right that are the remains of the mid-foot section. On the same side, a few lacing loops are preserved indicating that this sock likely had a tongue flap and lacing closure similar to that seen in the contemporaneous sock from Egypt currently in the V&A collections in London.

Dated to: pre-256 CE1

Find location: Dura-Europos, in modern day Syria

Material: Wool

Stitch(es) used: Z-crossed Cross-knit Looping,  F1B1 O & B1F1 O, knit & purl stitch patterned

Inventory number: Accession Number 1933.483

Current location: Yale University Art Gallery

Link to museum catalog or other data: https://artgallery.yale.edu/collections/objects/5962

Some sources in which more information can be found:

Rutt, Richard. A History of Hand Knitting. London: B T Batsford Ltd, 1987 ISBN 0713451181; reprinted Loveland, Colorado: Interweave Press, 1989 ISBN 0-934026-35-1, Library of Congress Catalog Number 87-46353; pgs. 28-30.

Pfister, Rudolf and Bellinger, Louisa. “The textiles: Knitting,” Rostovtzeff, M.I., et al. The excavations at Dura-Europos Final Report IV, Part II. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1945, 54-5.

Photograph:

1933.483 Patterned fragment from Dura Europos. Cropped and rotated to show original orientation. Original Photo Credit: The Yale University Art Gallery – Public Domain CC0 1.0 Deed

Please note that sharing to other venues will likely be intermittent. If you wish to receive these each week, please remember to follow the blog.
Patrons on Patreon receive early access previews, occasional extra details, and priority requests.

  1. The Yale Univeristy Art Gallery dates the fragment to c. AD 200-256 https://artgallery.yale.edu/collections/objects/5962. Dura Europos was sacked and never reoccupied, so we are fairly certain the sock pre-dates 256 CE when that occurred. The only other example of a sock with lacing loops in the corpus has been carbon dated to a very similar timeframe. ↩︎

NOW: Ancient Puebloan Sock P89.231, 13th cent

Our next Nalbound Object of the Week is one of the Ancient Puebloan socks from what is now known as the Southwestern United States. There is not a lot of detail available about this sock. What differentiates it from the other socks found in Ancient Pueblo contexts is the very interesting detail of its material.

Ancient Puebloan Sock as on display in July of 2019 at the Bata Shoe Museum.
Photo: Anne Marie Decker 7 July 2019

Object: Ancient Puebloan Sock

Description: A dark brown above ankle sock with a light brown tie at the ankle laced between the stitches. According to the Bata Shoe Museum, it may have been worn alone or with sandals.1 However, unlike several in the Arizona State museum, this one is entirely Simple Looping and is not worked off a braided or woven sole.

Dated to: c. 1200 CE, 13th century CE2

Find location: Southwestern United States3

Material: Human Hair4

Stitch(es) used: Z-crossed Simple Looping, F1 O (Stitch determination by Anne Marie Decker)

Inventory number: P89.231

Current location: Bata Shoe Museum, Toronto, Canada

Link to museum catalog or other data: Scroll through the online exhibition about socks to find the Ancient Puebloan sock: https://batashoemuseum.ca/socks/ (Click the next link 11 times)

Some sources in which more information can be found:

Arizona State University has a nice article on related Ancestral Pueblo ShoeSocks, including some really lovely photos of some in their collection.

Please note that sharing to other venues will likely be intermittent. If you wish to receive these each week, please remember to follow the blog.
Patrons on Patreon receive early access previews, occasional extra details, and priority requests.

  1. The exhibition label in 2019 and https://batashoemuseum.ca/socks/ ↩︎
  2. The exhibition label in 2019 and https://batashoemuseum.ca/socks/ ↩︎
  3. The exhibition label in 2019 and https://batashoemuseum.ca/socks/ ↩︎
  4. The exhibition label in 2019 and https://batashoemuseum.ca/socks/ ↩︎

NOW: Uppsala Sock UM11107

The Uppsala sock now joins our Nalbound Object of the Week collection. I had the pleasure seeing this sock on display during my first trip out to view extant objects back in June of 1999.

Object name: Uppsala Sock

Description: A light brown sock with a spiral heel (10 rows), slit at the ankle (7 rows), and a darker brown embellishment along the cuff/slit. The toe of the sock has 17 rows.1 The heel is worked in a beautiful perfect spiral; a photo of which is included in Anne Marie Frazén’s article “En medeltida socka i nålning” linked below (as well as other photos taken during conservation). The sock is 21 cm long with a 5 cm ankle shaft.2

Dated to: Found in late medieval layers3

Find location: Excavated in December of 1961 in plot 8 of the excavations of Duvan quarter in Uppsala, Sweden, amongst a large quantity of leather shoe remains.4

Material: now light brown S-spun Wool. The ankle decoration is a now dark brown S-twisted, fairly thick, wool yarn.5

Stitch(es) used: Mammen, UOO/UUOO [F2] (Frazén’s article shows a diagram of the stitch (upside down), but does not specify the connection used. However, she does say it is the same stitch found in the Mammen pennants and in the Egyptian sock described by Schinnerer in Antike Handarbeiten.)6

Inventory number: Uplandsmuseets inventarienummer UM11107

Current location: Upplandsmuseet (not on display)

Link to museum catalog or other data: https://digitaltmuseum.se/011023866712/socka

Some sources in which more information can be found:

Frazén, Anne Marie. “En medeltida socka i nålning” in Uppland: årsbok. Upplands fornminnesforening, 1963. Pgs. 38-47.

Kania, Katrin. Kleidung im Mittelalter: Materialien, Konstruktion, Nähtechnik : Ein Handbuch. Köln: Böhlau Verlag, 2010. ISBN: 978-3-412-20482-2.

Rothquist, Linnéa, Anita Andersson, Håkan Liby och Olle Norling. “SÖMA, NÅLA, BINDA nålbundet från Uppland”. 2003.

Additional Photographs:

Anna-Märta Berg shows the Uppsala sock in the exhibition at the Upplandsmuseet in 1964.
Photo: Upplandsmuseet Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs (CC BY-NC-ND)

Please note that sharing to other venues will likely be intermittent. If you wish to receive these each week, please remember to follow the blog.

  1. Frazén, Pg. 39. ↩︎
  2. Frazén, Pg. 39. ↩︎
  3. Frazén, Pg. 41. ↩︎
  4. Frazén, Pgs. 38 & 41. ↩︎
  5. Frazén, Pgs. 38-39. ↩︎
  6. Franzén, Pgs. 40 & 44. However, Katrin Kania lists UOO/UUOO F1, which would be Korgen, in the entry in her book Kleidung im Mittelalter: Materialien, Konstruktion, Nähtechnik : Ein Handbuch. Köln: Böhlau Verlag, 2010. ISBN: 978-3-412-20482-2 on page 398 when citing from Anne Marie Franzén’s article. ↩︎

NOW: Coppergate/York/Jorvik Sock – Small Find 13517 (Patreon sponsored)

With my sincerest thanks to my Patrons, this week’s Nalbound Object of the Week is the Coppergate Sock. On display at the Jorvik Viking Centre, this sock goes by many names; all related to its find location. Coppergate Sock, York Sock, or Jorvik Sock, but they are all the same artifact.

Photo: York Archaeology CC BY-NC 4.0
Photo: York Archaeology CC BY-NC 4.0

Object: Coppergate Sock, also known as the York Sock or the Jorvik Sock

Description: A fine wool sock that ends just below the ankle. The last row at the ankle is worked in a dyed yarn, unlike the rest of the sock, which either was meant to act as a decorative edge or could indicate a longer stocking leg in red is missing.1 However, we don’t have evidence of nalbound stockings going much past the ankle until a few centuries after this sock and even then they are not common in finds. Additionally, we do have evidence of Egyptian socks that have a single row of color at the ankle. Much of the heel is missing as well as holes near the toes and a damaged slit along the vamp. All pieces were connected, none loose. The pieces were drawn together during conservation in order to better show the original shape.2 There is evidence of patching having been sewn on the sock based on the outline of wool stitching. After conservation, the sock is 10 1/4 in. (260mm) long toe to heel (pre-conservation c. 9 1/2 in. / 0.23m). Circumference at ankle 12 7/8 in. (325mm) and at broadest part of foot 10 5/8 in. (270mm).3 Before conservation measurements are in Jean M. Glover’s, Senior Textile Conservation Officer at the North West Museum and Art Gallery Service, conservation report “Sock in nålebinding, 1309” in Textiles, Cordage and Raw fibre from 16-22 Coppergate. The Archaeology of York, The Small Finds 17/5. Published for the York Archaeological Trust by the Council for British Archaeology. 1989. Pg. 430-431. ISBN 0 906780 79 9.

Dated to: Period 4B is dated to 930-975 CE,3 10th century4

Find location: The sock was found in the backyard of one of the wattle buildings of Period 4B5 in the excavations of 16-22 Coppergate, York, England, UK. It was found in context with several other Scandinavian style textiles which may imply that they were imported on a Scandinavian visitor/invader or that they could be simplified copies made by the local Anglians.6

Current location: On display at the Jorvik Viking Centre

Material: Stable isotope analysis of the Coppergate sock indicates that the wool came from somewhere in the Ireland-to-south Scandinavia band. It is consistent with an origin of the British Isles, but Ireland and Denmark also give similar results.8  It is a smooth and even S2Z plied wool.9 (Two S spun singles plied together with a Z twist.) The missing patch (possibly flax or other vegetable fiber that has since decayed away) was sew on with Z2S plied wool10 1.5 mm in diameter.11 Based on the pictures, this repair yarn appears thicker in diameter than the yarn used for the nalbound fabric.

Color: Dark brown (potentially related to the many years of being buried).14 The last row of the sock at the ankle is worked in a smooth dark yarn that was dyed with madder. Test results were negative for dyes on the rest of the sock.15

The original diagram of the stitch used in the Coppergate sock. There is an issue with this diagram in that the needle shows the correct connection to the previous rows of F2, but the rest of the diagram shows an F3 connection. Image was originally published in the 1980’s and has been used repeatedly in multiple publications since.

Stitch(es) used: Based on analysis of the upper edge of the sock: York, UU/OOO F2.10 The foot portion could not be analyzed due to “heavy wear and felting on the inside.”11 Further analysis is obscured by the conservation tulle covering the sock.

Construction details: Examination of the pre-conservation drawings and the photographs available of the sock show a clear round start to the toe with quite a few stitches in it. According to Penelope Walton’s analysis, there is a single loop of yarn at the toe around which a circular row of loops is worked.12 The F2 connection combined with York stitch UU/OOO means that each subsequent row overlaps the previous row by half. Penelope Walton reported a gauge of approximately 36 rounds per 100mm.13 That’s about 36.6 rows per 4 inches or just barely over 9 rows to the inch.

Also shown are three areas of shorter row wedges in the heel. The first 7 rows deep coming off the mid-foot. The second, 3 or 4 rows are still remaining. The ankle has apparently 4 rows going around the entire ankle, cut only by the slit on the vamp. In the back of the heel are quite a few rows going parallel to the rows around the ankle. There was difficulty in this area for the conservators as they tried to draw the damaged areas together, because the rows were not as obvious in their orientation in this region.18 This is where the confusion regarding type of heel comes in, because if those were a third wedge in the style of the Egyptian or Swiss socks/stockings (which tended to have two at most), then one would expect longer rows followed by shorter rows with the ankle rows covering the ends. It is possible that the third wedge is worked in reverse, short to longer rows, to cup the back of the heel and give a more upright angle to the ankle opening (wedge heels tending towards a 45 degree rather than 90 degree angle between foot and leg). Figure 142a on page 344 of Textiles, Cordage and Raw Fibre from 16-22 Coppergate shows a drawing of how Penelope Walton thought the heel might have been reconstructed. It is important to note that she suggests the construction may be closer to the double wedges of one of the slightly later Swiss socks from Délémont/Delsberg than the spiral construction of the Uppsala heel or the rectangular heel flap and cup combination of the earlier Roman Egyptian socks. She does not appear to have known of the compound nalbound socks out of Egypt (only the cross-knit looping variety) that almost all have wedge heels, a few with two wedges, (the only exception being one that has a heel flap and cup style like the Cross-knit Looping style socks).

Inventory number: Small Find 13517. Catalogue Number 1309.

Link to museum catalog or other data: https://www.collections.yorkarchaeologicaltrust.co.uk/s/collections/item/124898#lg=1&slide=0

Some sources in which more information can be found:

Glover, Jean M., Senior Textile Conservation Officer at the North West Museum and Art Gallery Service, Blackburn. “Sock in nålebinding, 1309” in Textiles, Cordage and Raw fibre from 16-22 Coppergate. The Archaeology of York, The Small Finds 17/5. Published for the York Archaeological Trust by the Council for British Archaeology. 1989. Pg. 430-431. ISBN 0 906780 79 9.

von Holstein, Isabella Christina Charlottie. “A light stable isotope (C, N, H, O) approach to identifying movement of medieval textiles in North West Europe.” PhD Thesis, University of York, 2012. Pgs. 268–70.

von Holstein, Isabella C. C. & Walton Rogers, Penelope & Craig, Oliver & Penkman, Kirsty & Newton, Jason & Collins, Matthew. Provenancing Archaeological Wool Textiles from Medieval Northern Europe by Light Stable Isotope Analysis (δ13C, δ15N, δ2H). PLOS ONE: 2016 11. 10.1371/journal.pone.0162330.

Walton, Penelope. ‘Needlework from Jorvik’ Embroidery 36/4 (Winter 1985), pp 130-131.

Walton, Penelope. “Production at Coppergate, York: Anglo-Saxon or Viking?” in Textiles in Northern Archaeology, Textile Symposium in York, North European Symposium for Archaeological Textiles Monograph 3, NESAT III, ed. by Penelope Walton and John Peter Wild. London: Archetype Publications, 1990. ISBN 1-873132-05-0.

Walton, Penelope. Textiles, Cordage and Raw fibre from 16-22 Coppergate. The Archaeology of York, The Small Finds 17/5. Published for the York Archaeological Trust by the Council for British Archaeology. 1989. Pgs. 341-345. ISBN 0 906780 79 9.

Walton Rogers, Penelope. “Chapter 5. Textile networks in Viking-Age towns of Britain and Ireland” in Crafts and Social Networks in Viking Towns ed. by STEVEN P. ASHBY and SØREN M. SINDBÆK. Oxbow Books, 2019. Paperback Edition: ISBN 978-1-78925-160-9. Digital Edition: ISBN 978-1-78925-161-6 (ePub) https://www.academia.edu/99573338/Chapter_5_Textile_networks_in_Viking_Age_towns_of_Britain_and_Ireland

Walton Rogers, Penelope. Textile Production at 16-22 Coppergate. The Archaeology of York, The Small Finds 17/11 ed. by P.V. Addymann. Published for the York Archaeological Trust by the Council for British Archaeology. 1997. ISBN 1 872414 76 1.

Photographs:

Regia Anglorum was the first place to publish anything online regarding nalbinding that I can remember and they included Penelope Walton’s diagram and drawing of the Coppergate sock: https://regia.org/research/life/naalbind.htm

Astrid Bryde shared photos of the Coppergate sock from her visit to the Jorvik Viking Centre in 2018. The photo taken of the back of the heel is particularly interesting as it shows angled rows as if from a wedge style heel.

The article “York’s Viking Sock Becomes Part of ‘A History of the North in 100 Objects’” by the Jorvik Viking Center published August 6, 2018 has a close enough view you can see the conservation tulle.
Read more at https://www.jorvikvikingcentre.co.uk/press/yorks-viking-sock-becomes-part-history-north-100-objects/#6aq4FWa8UDvMoPYH.99

The Coppergate sock made BBC’s A History of the World: http://www.bbc.co.uk/ahistoryoftheworld/objects/fvO4ZPlnTKyGE0dWyuOdBQ

The Coopergate sock is included as one of the artifacts in the Jorvik Artefact Gallery. Scroll to right several times to see a nice photo that you can click on to enlarge. https://www.jorvikvikingcentre.co.uk/about/jorvik-artefact-gallery/

On May 7, 2019, Hacking Civilization published the following embedded YouTube video showing the Coppergate sock as it is currently displayed.

I recently ran across this video published by The JORVIK Group on Jun 6, 2016 also showing the Coppergate/York sock.

And more recently they’ve also posted:

This Facebook group, Nålbinding, is a closed group. If you join it and search for the Coppergate sock, you will find several interesting posts by a variety of people of photos taken of the sock on display.

Hilde Thunem’s article, Viking Clothing: hose and socks, includes several additional photos of the Coppergate sock on display. It also puts the sock in perspective noting that while there are multiple finds of socks/hose from the period and region, only the one is nalbound. Most are of cut and sewn woven cloth.

Acknowledgements: This extended Nalbound Object of the Week is brought to you by the generosity of my Patrons on Patreon. Your continued support helps to fund more detailed research and articles as well as longer blog posts.

Please note that sharing to other venues will likely be intermittent. If you wish to receive these each week, please remember to follow the blog.
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  1. Walton, Penelope. “The sock in nålebinding, 1309” in Textiles, Cordage and Raw fibre from 16-22 Coppergate. Pg. 343. ↩︎
  2. Glover, Jean M. “Sock in nålebinding, 1309” in Textiles, Cordage and Raw fibre from 16-22 Coppergate. Pg. 431. ↩︎
  3. Glover, Jean M. “Sock in nålebinding, 1309” in Textiles, Cordage and Raw fibre from 16-22 Coppergate. Pg. 430. ↩︎
  4. Walton, Penelope. Textiles, Cordage and Raw fibre from 16-22 Coppergate. Pg. 418. ↩︎
  5. Walton, Penelope. “The sock in nålebinding, 1309” in Textiles, Cordage and Raw fibre from 16-22 Coppergate. Pg. 341. ↩︎
  6. Walton, Penelope. “The sock in nålebinding, 1309” in Textiles, Cordage and Raw fibre from 16-22 Coppergate. Pg. 341. ↩︎
  7. Walton, Penelope. Textiles, Cordage and Raw fibre from 16-22 Coppergate. Pg. 418. ↩︎
  8. von Holstein, Isabella Christina Charlottie. “A light stable isotope (C, N, H, O) approach to identifying movement of medieval textiles in North West Europe.” PhD Thesis, University of York, 2012. Pgs. 268–70. Also cited by Walton Rogers, Penelope. “Chapter 5. Textile networks in Viking-Age towns of Britain and Ireland” in Crafts and Social Networks in Viking Towns. Pg. 105. and von Holstein, Isabella C. C. & Walton Rogers, Penelope & Craig, Oliver & Penkman, Kirsty & Newton, Jason & Collins, Matthew. Provenancing Archaeological Wool Textiles from Medieval Northern Europe by Light Stable Isotope Analysis (δ13C, δ15N, δ2H). PLOS ONE: 2016 11. 10.1371/journal.pone.0162330. Pg. 20. ↩︎
  9. Walton, Penelope. “The sock in nålebinding, 1309” in Textiles, Cordage and Raw fibre from 16-22 Coppergate. Pg. 342. and Glover, Jean M. “Sock in nålebinding, 1309” in Textiles, Cordage and Raw fibre from 16-22 Coppergate. Pg. 430. ↩︎
  10. Walton, Penelope. “The sock in nålebinding, 1309” in Textiles, Cordage and Raw fibre from 16-22 Coppergate. Pg. 341. ↩︎
  11. Walton, Penelope. “Catalogue” in Textiles, Cordage and Raw fibre from 16-22 Coppergate. Pg. 435. ↩︎
  12. Glover, Jean M. “Sock in nålebinding, 1309” in Textiles, Cordage and Raw fibre from 16-22 Coppergate. Pg. 430. ↩︎
  13. Walton, Penelope. “The sock in nålebinding, 1309” in Textiles, Cordage and Raw fibre from 16-22 Coppergate. Pg. 342. and Glover, Jean M. “Sock in nålebinding, 1309” in Textiles, Cordage and Raw fibre from 16-22 Coppergate. Pg. 430. ↩︎
  14. Walton, Penelope. “The sock in nålebinding, 1309” in Textiles, Cordage and Raw fibre from 16-22 Coppergate. Pg. 342. Diagram on page 343. ↩︎
  15. Walton, Penelope. “The sock in nålebinding, 1309” in Textiles, Cordage and Raw fibre from 16-22 Coppergate. Pg. 342. and Glover, Jean M. “Sock in nålebinding, 1309” in Textiles, Cordage and Raw fibre from 16-22 Coppergate. Pg. 430. ↩︎
  16. Walton, Penelope. “The sock in nålebinding, 1309” in Textiles, Cordage and Raw fibre from 16-22 Coppergate. Pg. 342. ↩︎
  17. Walton, Penelope. “The sock in nålebinding, 1309” in Textiles, Cordage and Raw fibre from 16-22 Coppergate. Pg. 342. ↩︎
  18. Glover, Jean M. “Sock in nålebinding, 1309” in Textiles, Cordage and Raw fibre from 16-22 Coppergate. Pg. 431. ↩︎
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