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LOT 0305
Hunnish Gilt Strap Attachment with Four Stylised Heads
6TH CENTURY A.D.
2 3/8 in. (35.7 grams, 60 mm).
Cruciform in plan with central disc pierced with a saltire-shaped void and crenellated border; each radiating arm ending in a mask with centre-parted hair and short beard. [No Reserve]
ProvenancePrivate collection, London.
LiteratureSee Treasures of the Dark Ages in Europe, Ariadne Galleries, 1991, no.122, for a comparable object.
FootnotesThe size and shape of this ornamental cross are evocative of metalwork that would have decorated clothing. However, the fact that the cross does not have a loop on the back suggests that it may not necessarily have been worn, while the ring in the centre and the grooves along that ring suggest that a rope of some sort may have been threaded through. One possibility is that this was a harness mount.
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LOT 0305
Hunnish Gilt Strap Attachment with Four Stylised Heads
Estimate £1,000 - 1,400€1,160 - 1,620 (for guidance only)$1,350 - 1,890 (for guidance only)
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Slavic Stone Idol Figure
7th-9th century A.D. or laterEstimate: £40 - 60 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £5
Comprising a flat-section body of a naked man with an ovoid face, marked eyes, a T-shaped nose, the arms along the sides, and angular characters to the lower body. 8.96 grams, 44 mm
From a private collection formed in the 1960s. Acquired at auction in the UK. -
Merovingian Gold Hoop Earring with Garnets
5th-6th century A.D.Estimate: £800 - 1,000 (‡+bp*)
Opening Bid: £425
With a thick penannular loop and polyhedral finial set with twelve garnet cloisons, some detached. 6.36 grams, 34 mm
Acquired in the mid 1980s-1990s. Private collection, Switzerland, thence by descent. Private collection, since the late 1990s. -
Hunnish Gilt Strap Attachment with Four Stylised Heads
6th century A.D.Estimate: £1,000 - 1,400 (+bp*)
Bids: 5 | Current Bid: £270
Cruciform in plan with central disc pierced with a saltire-shaped void and crenellated border; each radiating arm ending in a mask with centre-parted hair and short beard. 35.7 grams, 60 mm
Private collection, London.
The size and shape of this ornamental cross are evocative of metalwork that would have decorated clothing. However, the fact that the cross does not have a loop on the back suggests that it may not necessarily have been worn, while the ring in the centre and the grooves along that ring suggest that a rope of some sort may have been threaded through. One possibility is that this was a harness mount.
