Medieval Bronze and Lead Artefact Collection

Pair of thimbles with pellet decoration, and a narrow plain band to the lower edge. 13.4 grams total, 16-21 mm



Acquired on the UK art market. Property of a Lancashire, UK, collector.

Matched pair of carved stone corbels, each a mythical beast with a rounded body, bat-like wings folded behind the back, long arched neck and reptilian head with gaping mouth; mounted on an integral square-section base with stepped rear face; socket to forward face with bronze insert; some surface accretions. 400 kg total, 118 -121.5 cm



Private collection, UK. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate number no.13385-259013.

From the Romanesque era onwards, images of demons, often carved on the external sides of cathedrals and churches, were strongly linked to the fantastical and monstrous creatures of ancient myth and legend. For theologians, supernatural creatures which could not otherwise be explained were not of God and therefore had to be demonic: their incorporation in the ecclesiastic structures showed that their malevolent powers could be kept under control only through the protection of the church. This origin of Christian demons is likely to have influenced the visual representation in medieval culture as hybrid and monstrous, especially given the increased interest in Greek works from the twelfth century onwards in the West.

Discoid type depicting a bearded face within a raised border of annulets, each with a pellet at its centre; integrally cast pin to reverse. 2.97 grams, 20 mm



Found Alford, Lincolnshire, UK. Recorded with UKDFD no.49065.

The badge possibly represents the head of John the Baptist on a platter, but an alternative interpretation is that it depicts the face of Christ in a form known as the 'Vernicle' or 'Veronica', which arises from the legend that the face of Christ was miraculously impressed on the handkerchief or veil that Saint Veronica gave to him to wipe his face on the way to Calvary. In support of the case for this interpretation, Spencer illustrates another circular badge of generally similar type (No. 254c), but with a border inscribed with the first line of a popular 14th-century prayer composed in honour of the Vernicle. In support of the case for the John the Baptist interpretation, some very similar badges depict a rather dishevelled head with a sharply couped neck.