'In world archaeology, the Baltic Sea in the Viking Age is blessed by 150 years of exceptional excavations and study. This compelling book maps the rise and importance of towns and trade, drawing on this research. It uniquely describes how special economic zones serviced the Viking homelands, intersecting with the sea kings in the West and the Caliphate in the East. More, Kalmring skilfully shows this was part of a larger European history, in which archaeological evidence brings to life the essential background to Viking piracy and colonisation. It is a tour de force worthy of the rich archaeology of the Baltic.' Richard Hodges, OBE, FSE, author of Dark Age Economics: A New Audit (2012)