diff --git a/packages/core/src/delegation.js b/packages/core/src/delegation.js
index 54b577c9..8f91b62b 100644
--- a/packages/core/src/delegation.js
+++ b/packages/core/src/delegation.js
@@ -2,6 +2,10 @@ import * as UCAN from '@ipld/dag-ucan'
 import * as API from '@ucanto/interface'
 import * as Link from './link.js'
 import * as DAG from './dag.js'
+import * as CAR from './car.js'
+import * as CBOR from './cbor.js'
+import * as Schema from './schema.js'
+import { ok, error } from './result.js'
 
 /**
  * @deprecated
@@ -245,6 +249,13 @@ export class Delegation {
     return exportDAG(this.root, this.blocks, this.attachedLinks)
   }
 
+  /**
+   * @returns {API.Await<API.Result<Uint8Array, Error>>}
+   */
+  archive() {
+    return archive(this)
+  }
+
   iterateIPLDBlocks() {
     return exportDAG(this.root, this.blocks, this.attachedLinks)
   }
@@ -337,6 +348,70 @@ export class Delegation {
   }
 }
 
+/**
+ * Writes given `Delegation` chain into a content addressed archive (CAR)
+ * buffer and returns it.
+ *
+ * @param {API.Delegation} delegation}
+ * @returns {Promise<API.Result<Uint8Array, Error>>}
+ */
+export const archive = async delegation => {
+  try {
+    // Iterate over all of the blocks in the DAG and add them to the
+    // block store.
+    const store = new Map()
+    for (const block of delegation.iterateIPLDBlocks()) {
+      store.set(`${block.cid}`, block)
+    }
+
+    // Then we we create a descriptor block to describe what this DAG represents
+    // and it to the block store as well.
+    const variant = await CBOR.write({
+      [`ucan@${delegation.version}`]: delegation.root.cid,
+    })
+    store.set(`${variant.cid}`, variant)
+
+    // And finally we encode the whole thing into a CAR.
+    const bytes = CAR.encode({
+      roots: [variant],
+      blocks: store,
+    })
+
+    return ok(bytes)
+  } catch (cause) {
+    return error(/** @type {Error} */ (cause))
+  }
+}
+
+export const ArchiveSchema = Schema.variant({
+  'ucan@0.9.1': /** @type {Schema.Schema<API.UCANLink>} */ (
+    Schema.link({ version: 1 })
+  ),
+})
+
+/**
+ * Extracts a `Delegation` chain from a given content addressed archive (CAR)
+ * buffer. Assumes that the CAR contains a single root block corresponding to
+ * the delegation variant.
+ *
+ * @param {Uint8Array} archive
+ */
+export const extract = async archive => {
+  try {
+    const { roots, blocks } = CAR.decode(archive)
+    const [root] = roots
+    if (root == null) {
+      return Schema.error('CAR archive does not contain a root block')
+    }
+    const { bytes } = root
+    const variant = CBOR.decode(bytes)
+    const [, link] = ArchiveSchema.match(variant)
+    return ok(view({ root: link, blocks }))
+  } catch (cause) {
+    return error(/** @type {Error} */ (cause))
+  }
+}
+
 /**
  * @param {API.Delegation} delegation
  * @returns {IterableIterator<API.Delegation>}
@@ -497,16 +572,19 @@ export const create = ({ root, blocks }) => new Delegation(root, blocks)
 
 /**
  * @template {API.Capabilities} C
- * @template [T=undefined]
+ * @template [E=never]
  * @param {object} dag
  * @param {API.UCANLink<C>} dag.root
  * @param {DAG.BlockStore} dag.blocks
- * @param {T} [fallback]
- * @returns {API.Delegation<C>|T}
+ * @param {E} [fallback]
+ * @returns {API.Delegation<C>|E}
  */
 export const view = ({ root, blocks }, fallback) => {
   const block = DAG.get(root, blocks, null)
-  return block ? create({ root: block, blocks }) : /** @type {T} */ (fallback)
+  if (block == null) {
+    return fallback !== undefined ? fallback : DAG.notFound(root)
+  }
+  return create({ root: block, blocks })
 }
 
 /**
diff --git a/packages/core/src/result.js b/packages/core/src/result.js
index 0f4f4c9f..b2b11afc 100644
--- a/packages/core/src/result.js
+++ b/packages/core/src/result.js
@@ -6,7 +6,7 @@ import * as API from '@ucanto/interface'
  *
  * @template {{}|string|boolean|number} T
  * @param {T} value
- * @returns {{ok: T, value?:undefined}}
+ * @returns {{ok: T, error?:undefined}}
  */
 export const ok = value => {
   if (value == null) {
diff --git a/packages/core/src/schema/schema.js b/packages/core/src/schema/schema.js
index d8d1e39f..da1affd1 100644
--- a/packages/core/src/schema/schema.js
+++ b/packages/core/src/schema/schema.js
@@ -1342,7 +1342,7 @@ export const variant = variants => new Variant(variants)
 
 /**
  * @param {string} message
- * @returns {{error: Schema.Error}}
+ * @returns {{error: Schema.Error, ok?: undefined}}
  */
 export const error = message => ({ error: new SchemaError(message) })
 
diff --git a/packages/core/src/schema/type.ts b/packages/core/src/schema/type.ts
index 2e51e6e0..09a27dbe 100644
--- a/packages/core/src/schema/type.ts
+++ b/packages/core/src/schema/type.ts
@@ -207,7 +207,7 @@ export interface StringSchema<O extends string, I = unknown>
   endsWith<Suffix extends string>(
     suffix: Suffix
   ): StringSchema<O & `${string}${Suffix}`, I>
-  refine<T extends string>(schema: Reader<T, O>): StringSchema<O & T, I>
+  refine<T>(schema: Reader<T, O>): StringSchema<O & T, I>
 }
 
 declare const Marker: unique symbol
diff --git a/packages/core/test/delegation.spec.js b/packages/core/test/delegation.spec.js
index af75f9e6..84576149 100644
--- a/packages/core/test/delegation.spec.js
+++ b/packages/core/test/delegation.spec.js
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 import { assert, test } from './test.js'
-import { Delegation, UCAN, delegate, parseLink } from '../src/lib.js'
+import { CAR, CBOR, delegate, Delegation, parseLink, UCAN } from '../src/lib.js'
 import { alice, bob, mallory, service as w3 } from './fixtures.js'
 import { base64 } from 'multiformats/bases/base64'
 import { getBlock } from './utils.js'
@@ -290,6 +290,143 @@ test('.buildIPLDView() return same value', async () => {
   assert.equal(ucan.buildIPLDView(), ucan)
 })
 
+test('delegation archive', async () => {
+  const ucan = await delegate({
+    issuer: alice,
+    audience: w3,
+    capabilities: [
+      {
+        with: alice.did(),
+        can: 'test/echo',
+        nb: {
+          message: 'data:1',
+        },
+      },
+    ],
+  })
+
+  const archive = await ucan.archive()
+  if (archive.error) {
+    return assert.fail(archive.error.message)
+  }
+
+  const extract = await Delegation.extract(archive.ok)
+  if (extract.error) {
+    return assert.fail(extract.error.message)
+  }
+
+  assert.deepEqual(extract.ok, ucan)
+})
+
+test('fail to extract wrong version', async () => {
+  const ucan = await delegate({
+    issuer: alice,
+    audience: w3,
+    capabilities: [
+      {
+        with: alice.did(),
+        can: 'test/echo',
+        nb: {
+          message: 'data:1',
+        },
+      },
+    ],
+  })
+
+  const root = await CBOR.write({
+    ['ucan@0.8.0']: ucan.root.cid,
+  })
+  ucan.blocks.set(`${root.cid}`, root)
+
+  const bytes = CAR.encode({
+    roots: [root],
+    blocks: ucan.blocks,
+  })
+
+  const result = await Delegation.extract(bytes)
+  if (result.ok) {
+    return assert.fail('should not be ok')
+  }
+
+  assert.match(
+    result.error.message,
+    /ucan@0.9.1 instead got object with key ucan@0.8.0/
+  )
+
+  const badbytes = await Delegation.extract(new Uint8Array([0, 1, 1]))
+  assert.match(badbytes.error?.message || '', /invalid car/i)
+
+  const noroot = CAR.encode({ blocks: ucan.blocks })
+  const noRootResult = await Delegation.extract(noroot)
+  assert.match(noRootResult.error?.message || '', /does not contain a root/i)
+
+  const nonvariantroot = await Delegation.extract(
+    CAR.encode({
+      roots: [ucan.root],
+      blocks: ucan.blocks,
+    })
+  )
+
+  assert.match(nonvariantroot.error?.message || '', /object with a single key/i)
+
+  const okroot = await CBOR.write({
+    ['ucan@0.9.1']: ucan.root.cid,
+  })
+
+  const missingblocks = await Delegation.extract(
+    CAR.encode({ roots: [okroot] })
+  )
+
+  assert.match(missingblocks.error?.message || '', /Block .* not found/i)
+})
+
+test('fail archive with bad input', async () => {
+  const result = await Delegation.archive(
+    // @ts-expect-error
+    {}
+  )
+  assert.equal(result.error instanceof Error, true)
+})
+
+test('archive delegation chain', async () => {
+  const proof = await Delegation.delegate({
+    issuer: alice,
+    audience: bob,
+    capabilities: [
+      {
+        can: 'store/add',
+        with: alice.did(),
+      },
+    ],
+  })
+
+  const ucan = await Delegation.delegate({
+    issuer: bob,
+    audience: mallory,
+    capabilities: [
+      {
+        can: 'store/add',
+        with: alice.did(),
+        root: link,
+      },
+    ],
+    proofs: [proof],
+  })
+
+  const archive = await ucan.archive()
+  if (archive.error) {
+    return assert.fail(archive.error.message)
+  }
+
+  const extract = await Delegation.extract(archive.ok)
+  if (extract.error) {
+    return assert.fail(extract.error.message)
+  }
+
+  assert.deepEqual(extract.ok, ucan)
+  assert.deepEqual(extract.ok.proofs[0], proof)
+})
+
 test('delegation.attach block in capabiliy', async () => {
   const block = await getBlock({ test: 'inlineBlock' })
   const ucan = await Delegation.delegate({
diff --git a/packages/interface/src/lib.ts b/packages/interface/src/lib.ts
index 9d9a3950..12c840e6 100644
--- a/packages/interface/src/lib.ts
+++ b/packages/interface/src/lib.ts
@@ -246,6 +246,8 @@ export interface Delegation<C extends Capabilities = Capabilities>
   toJSON(): DelegationJSON<this>
   delegate(): Await<Delegation<C>>
 
+  archive(): Await<Result<Uint8Array, Error>>
+
   attach(block: Block): void
 }