Viking pennies forged from Islamic silver reveal cross-continental trade

A study of the Damhus hoard near Ribe shows early Viking pennies were minted largely from melted Islamic dirhams, with isotopic evidence indicating foreign silver ingots were melted and cast into hundreds of thousands of coins (bearing Odin and a stag) around AD 830–850, underscoring extensive long‑distance trade at the dawn of Viking coinage.