Weights and Balances of Bronze Age Europe

Weighing technology transformed trade and economies in the Bronze Age, but is often overlooked in favour of other innovations such as metallurgy. Drawing on the largest collection of pre-literate Bronze Age weights, this book highlights the pivotal role of balance weights in shaping prehistoric European economies. It explores how this technology facilitated the emergence of a continental market, uniting communities and assisting both commoners and elites in everyday exchange. The research, carried out as part of the „Weight and Value“ project, explores the spread of weighing technology, the formation of weight systems and the development of markets, ultimately contributing to a pan-European economic network and the emergence of metallic money.