Pre-Viking Silver-Gilt Scabbard Mount

CIRCA 4TH-5TH CENTURY A.D.

5/8 in. (4.2 grams, 14 mm).

Domed and with a ribbed basal rim, the sidewall with four small circular bosses each framed by a bilinear arch; surmounted by a slightly convex disc bearing an incised cross; transverse bar to the underside; Mortimer's type 4iii.

Provenance

Acquired early 1990s.
From an East Anglian private collection.

Literature

See Mortimer, P., A Pyramid Scheme. Pyramid Mounts from the 5th to the 7th century found in the United Kingdom, on academia.edu; Mortimer, P., Woden's Warriors, Ely, 2011, p.115-7.

Footnotes

The mount is an extremely early example of the so-called 'sword pyramid' mount which was used in the Vendel period as part of the sword-suspension system. It has a parallel in the find from Sandby Borg, Oland, Sweden where Style I masks also appear.

CONDITION

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LOT 0308