Viking Age Bronze Figural Sword Chape

Flat-section axehead dangle attached to a sturdy wire suspension loop. 4.9 grams, 41 mm



Ex German art market, 2000s. Acquired from an EU collector living in London. From the collection of a Surrey, UK, gentleman.

Comprising a silver sleeve with a knapped flint arrowhead, a circular cell set with a clear glass cabochon above. 3.46 grams, 44.84 mm



From the private collection of a London gentleman, from his grandfather's collection formed before the early 1970s.

This amulet was believed to offer protection against 'Elfshot'. The attack of elves was believed responsible for mysterious suffering in men and livestock: sudden shooting pains localised to a particular area of the body, such as in rheumatism, arthritis, or muscle stitches or cramps. Elves were thought to shoot darts or arrows where such pains had no obvious external cause. Belief in elfshot persisted into the 20th century in rural areas, and as proof, country folk would sometimes find small arrowheads (the remains of Neolithic or Mesolithic flints, or naturally-occurring spear-shaped stones) that were believed to be the magical weapons that caused the afflictions. Belief in elfshot began in the Pagan Germanic period.

Comprising an axe-shaped pendant with a flaring blade and a punched annulet-in-ring motif, a large suspension loop. 5.78 grams, 49 mm



Ex German art market, 2000s. Acquired from an EU collector living in London. From the collection of a Surrey, UK, gentleman.