Paper long abstract:

In archaeological texts it is often assumed that a finished product - e.g. an axe, a pot, a piece of textile - is the creation of a single person. That is, it was made by a particular smith, the weaver or another craftsperson working in isolation. This paper poses the question: can we really assume that there was only one person behind all the processes represented by a finished product?

In a recent publication Bronze Age smiths are portrayed as the people who did everything in southern Scandinavia, from making pots to conducting cremations. In contrast, quite the opposite has been suggested elsewhere, such as in Walton Roger's (2007) publication on textile production in Anglo-Saxon Britain, where the range of people involved in various tasks has been highlighted. Also with textile production as its focus, this study will take into account ethnographic, historical and archaeological examples in order to discuss the collaborative nature of craft production. How are the two diametrically opposed views of craft production reflected in our interpretations, and how can they be reconciled?