Loading, please wait...
LOT 1635
Pre-Viking Silver Filigree Bucket Pendant
4TH-7TH CENTURY A.D.
5/8 in. (1.35 grams, 17 mm).
Formed as a bell-shaped container with granule detailing. [No Reserve]
ProvenanceFrom the private collection of a London gentleman, from his grandfather's collection formed before the early 1970s.
LiteratureSee Khrapunov, I. and Stylegar, F.A., Inter Ambo Maria, Contacts between Scandinavia and the Crimea in the Roman Period, Бажан И, А., Каргапольцев С, Ю, 1989, Об одной категории украшений-амулетов римского времени в Восточной Европе, СА, No.3; see Meaney, A., Anglo-Saxon Amulets and Curing Stones, Oxford, BAR British Series 96, 1981, pp.166-168, for discussion of the type.
FootnotesPendants in the form of miniature buckets have been found in a number of pagan Anglo-Saxon and Viking contexts and are generally made of bronze or iron, with gold examples being rare; three gold examples were found with the hoard from Hoen, Norway. Bronze bucket amulets have been found at Driffield in Yorkshire and Vimose bog in Denmark, among other places. In form, they represent wooden buckets bound with bronze or iron bands, which have been found in Anglo-Saxon and Viking graves and are believed to have held mead or ale and were used to replenish the cups from which warriors drank. As amulet,s they probably represent the ecstatic power of alcoholic drink and the role of women as the dispensers of these precious beverages.
CONDITIONTimeLine Auctions follows a vetting process to ensure the authenticity and legality of all items, reinforcing our commitment to integrity and responsible trading. Each antiquity, antique, and coin lot undergoes thorough examination by a vetting committee of at least ten external specialists, professional trade association members, scientists, and archaeologists: Our Vetting Process
AUCTIONS:
TimeLine is a leading auction house specialising in antiquities, ancient art, collectables, natural history, coins, medals, and books. Our auctions offer museums, collectors, historians, and enthusiasts the opportunity to acquire unique and historically significant pieces.
-
Viking Age Bronze Tortoise-Type Brooch Group
9th-11th century A.D.Estimate: £1,000 - 1,400 (‡+bp*)
Opening Bid: £500
Comprising three shallow-domed plate brooches each with low-relief zoomorphic ornament and a narrow ledged rim; to the reverse, a small catch and T-shaped pin-lug; one with textile remains in situ. 140 grams total, 77-80 mm
From the collection of a North American gentleman, formed in the 1990s. -
Anglo-Scandinavian Viking Bronze Stirrup Mount with Pseudo-Runes
11th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £72
Williams's Class A Type 1 with trapezoidal plaque and narrow ledge to the rear; incised geometric design following the outline of the mount with symmetrical panels; to the neck five vertical lines, perhaps pseudo-runes. 19.88 grams, 50 mm
Property of a gentleman; acquired in the 1970s.
The markings on the neck appear to conform to the shapes of four runes, being inverted chevrons to the edges (runic 'U'), a character of two verticals and a sloping cross-bar (runic 'H'), and a simple vertical stroke (runic 'I'). However, the outer chevrons are formed as the junction of the inner border with a vertical while the cross-bar appears to be a later abrasion. The form of 'H' with a single cross-bar is very early (2nd -5th century AD) and is almost unknown in England, while by the 8th century this form had been replaced in Scandinavia by a rune formed as a vertical with a small saltire to the centre (like an asterisk). It is nevertheless possible that these marks were intended as a form of pseudo-runic text. -
Viking Inspired Bronze Omega Brooch
Mordvinian, 12th-14th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £46
Decoration to the trapezoidal plates with raised pellets and braided borders. 16 grams, 56 mm
Property of a North West London, UK, gallery; formerly in a 1980s collection. From the property of a late Lincolnshire, UK, gentleman.
