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Details
LOT 1778
Saxon Bronze Ring with Lion
7TH-8TH CENTURY A.D.
3/4 in. (3.38 grams, 19.76 mm overall, 16.40 mm internal diameter (approximate size British L, USA 5 3/4, Europe 11.24, Japan 10)).
Comprising a D-section hoop and discoid bezel with incuse lion walking right, similar to Anglo-Saxon coins of King Eadberht of Northumbria. [No Reserve]
Provenance
Acquired on the UK and EU art market before 2000.
From the private collection of a Surrey, UK, gentleman.
Literature
Cf. Wamser, L., Die Welt von Byzanz - Europas Östliches Erbe, München, 2004, item 668, for the type.
Footnotes
Although the main themes represented on the bezels of Dark Ages rings were inspired by Christian themes, sometimes images of animals were also depicted. The lions were connected with Biblical interpretations and episodes in Byzantium as well as in the West.
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