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LOT 1215
Viking Age Bronze Comb
10TH-12TH CENTURY A.D.
1 3/4 in. (16.5 grams, 44 mm).
Featuring a scalloped handle with openwork scrolling tendrils, complete set of teeth below. [No Reserve]
ProvenanceAcquired 1980-2000.
Ex property of an American collector.
See similar in Arbman, H., Birka I, Die Gräber, Uppsala, 1940, pl.100, no.2, from grave 1162.
FootnotesNorsemen were particularly fastidious about their appearance. The hair and beard were important to the men, for making a statement and to intimidate their opponents. Early combs were made from antler or bone and carried in a small pouch; high status combs were later made from metal (mainly bronze) and have been found as grave goods.
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:
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Viking Age Bronze Decorated Bracelet
9th-11th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £85
Of penannular form with convex outer face and geometric ornament to the body, likely zoomorphic terminal; child-sized. 26.6 grams, 50 mm
From the collection of a North American gentleman, formed in the 1990s.
Similar bracelets were found in pairs on the remains of the left forearm bones of a female, in grave 83 of Hemlanden cemetery in Birka. These bracelets, as visible in this grave, were usually worn in pairs on both arms. -
Viking Age Bronze Gripping Beast Pendant
9th-11th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £195
Composed of an openwork discoid body with integral loop displaying a beast head in relief. 4.5 grams, 29 mm
From the collection of a North American gentleman, formed in the 1990s. -
Viking Age Bronze Bird Brooch
10th-11th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £104
Modelled facing left, stylised wing and body detailing; remains of a fitting element to reverse. 6.06 grams, 30 mm
From the collection of a North American gentleman, formed in the 1990s.
Bird brooches from the late(r) Viking era have been found in Scandinavia as well in areas occupied and inhabited by the Vikings and Norsemen within England, in Anglo-Scandinavian and Anglo-Saxon contexts. These so-called bird shaped brooches can be dated to the 11th and even early 12th century. Stylistically the brooch here cannot be categorised as a distinct 'Viking style' such as the late Urnes style, although some types of other bird shaped brooches shows us connections to the Ringerike and Urnes style. The decoration and form of the bird on the brooch here is more influenced by the development of Romanesque styles spreading from the Continent into Scandinavian art, like the style of a bird, depicted on the right corner next to the door portal of Rimsø Kirke, Jylland, completed in 1150 A.D.
