A forged hack-gold rod found in Torksey, Lincolnshire. © The Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge
A forged hack-gold rod found in Torksey, Lincolnshire. © The Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge

A forged hack-gold rod found in Torksey, Lincolnshire. © The Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge A forged hack-gold rod found in Torksey, Lincolnshire. © The Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge A forged hack-gold rod found in Torksey, Lincolnshire. © The Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge A forged hack-gold rod found in Torksey, Lincolnshire. © The Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge

Forged Hack-gold Rod (CM 595-2010)

A forged hack-gold rod found in Torksey, Lincolnshire

This forged hack-gold rod comprises a curved section of gilt copper-alloy. It is square in cross-section and is broken at both ends. It shows that someone near Torksey was trying to con others by passing copper-alloy as gold. Like hacksilver, hack-gold was used to pay for items by weight of precious metal. The buyer and seller would agree the value of an item and pieces of silver or gold would have been cut up and weight out until the right amount had been paid. Gold was much less common among the Vikings than silver.

Object Type

Hackgold

Date

circa 800 — 1000

Ascribed Culture

Original/Reproduction

Original

Material

Collection

Viking Objects

Current Location

The Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge

Keywords

bullion, copper_alloy, Danelaw Saga, Economy, Fitzwilliam_Museum, hackgold, Lincolnshire, Torksey, trade, Viking

Further information

You can see the original at The Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge.

This object is related to Torksey, Lincolnshire.
Find out about Torksey, Lincolnshire.

Acknowledgements

© The Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge

References

The Fitzwilliam Museum

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