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_900x900.jpg "Anglo-Saxon Great Square-Headed Brooch")
_200x200.jpg "Anglo-Saxon Great Square-Headed Brooch")
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LOT 0368
Anglo-Saxon Great Square-Headed Brooch
6TH CENTURY A.D.
4 1/2 in. (82 grams, 11.5 cm).
Comprising: trapezoidal headplate with beast-head spurs to the upper angles and concentric panels of Style I ornament; shallow bow with central cell and garnet insert; long footplate with lateral lappets and central lozenge; facing mask above a trapezoidal bar finial; pin-lugs and catch to the reverse. [No Reserve]
ProvenanceFound U.K.
British private collection, acquired by 2000.
Cf. Hines, J., A New Corpus of Anglo-Saxon Great Square-Headed Brooches, London, 1997, items 11(a) Linton Heath for headplate, 17(b) Rothley, for foot.
FootnotesThe meaning of the 'facing mask' motif is probably related to the profile masks so frequently used in Style I art, where the 'pellet' eye is enclosed by an arched frame: the 'facing mask' repeats this motif to produce a pair of eyes in a doubled 'bow'. An element of visual 'riddling' is no doubt present: the design is neither one thing nor the other, but includes elements of both.
Distribution of great square-headed brooches was initially concentrated along the valleys of the Rivers Trent, Thames and Severn, though it was later confined to the East Midlands and East Anglia (Hines, 1997, figs. 101, 102).
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Anglo-Saxon Great Square-Headed Brooch
6th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £1,430
Comprising: trapezoidal headplate with beast-head spurs to the upper angles and concentric panels of Style I ornament; shallow bow with central cell and garnet insert; long footplate with lateral lappets and central lozenge; facing mask above a trapezoidal bar finial; pin-lugs and catch to the reverse. 82 grams, 11.5 cm
Found U.K. British private collection, acquired by 2000.
The meaning of the 'facing mask' motif is probably related to the profile masks so frequently used in Style I art, where the 'pellet' eye is enclosed by an arched frame: the 'facing mask' repeats this motif to produce a pair of eyes in a doubled 'bow'. An element of visual 'riddling' is no doubt present: the design is neither one thing nor the other, but includes elements of both. Distribution of great square-headed brooches was initially concentrated along the valleys of the Rivers Trent, Thames and Severn, though it was later confined to the East Midlands and East Anglia (Hines, 1997, figs. 101, 102). -
Anglo-Saxon Pottery Sherd Group
6th century A.D. and laterSold for (Inc. bp): £104
Group comprising six numbered and annotated card boxes each with a sherd from Bagmoor or Dialstone; each piece with inked reference number. 264 grams total, 36-48 mm
Found Bagmoor, Lincolnshire and Dialstone, near Stockport, UK. -
Anglo-Saxon Gilt Chip-Carved Bronze Lozengiform Brooch
Early 9th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £572
Plate brooch with integral coiled spring and stub of the pin to one end; raised border enclosing a dense panel of 'Mercian Style' foliage in high-relief with central stud. 2.6 grams, 41 mm
Ex Colchester, UK, collection, formed 1980s-1990s. From the collection of Dirk Kennis, Belgium.
Lozenge brooches (known as Weetch (2014) Type 31.C ) are not a frequently found type in British archaeology; the British Museum's records list only 34 such items, almost all found in the East Midlands or the Winchester area. Recorded, studied, and determined by the Secretary of State’s Expert Adviser as an object of cultural interest. The Reviewing Committee on the Export of Works of Art and Objects of Cultural Interest (RCEWA) considered an application to export this object. The Committee concluded that the object satisfied the third Waverley criterion and is therefore currently not exportable.
