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LOT 1516
Viking Age Bronze Pendant
10TH-12TH CENTURY A.D.
7/8 in. (1.87 grams, 22 mm).
With openwork lunate design decorated in low relief pellets; integral suspension loop. [No Reserve]
ProvenanceAcquired on the German art market before 2000.
From an old Munich collection.
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AUCTIONS:
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Viking Bronze Ring Brooch with Amulets
9th-11th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £104
The round-bodied brooch with articulate flat-section tongue, adorned with three free-running flat-section rings, a decorated sheet-gold axe-head ornament attached to the central ring. 3.2 grams, 22 mm
Acquired on the UK art market. Property of a Ruislip, UK, gentleman, by inheritance. -
Viking Age Bronze Penannular Brooch with Cabochons
8th-12th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £46
Retaining a section of the brooch's free-running tongue; discoid terminals set with blue and purple opaque glass inlays. 19.8 grams, 70 mm
Acquired on the UK art market. Property of a Ruislip, UK, gentleman, by inheritance. -
Viking Age Bronze Contorted Gripping Beast Pendant
Late 10th-early 11th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £390
Scandinavian pendant of Norelund type with integral suspension loop; the openwork plaque with three-band border and four panels, internal stylised zoomorph with hatched panel to the hip, gripping hands to the body and border, facing mask below the loop. 6.22 grams, 34 mm
Acquired on the German art market before 2000. From an old Munich collection.
There is a class of discoid pendants with banded borders and contorted figures found in the hinterland of the Baltic region, associated with the influence of Scandinavian settlers. The design of these items recalls specific elements of Scandinavian art - for example, the 'gripping hands' motif is a feature of the Oseberg Style named after the famous Norwegian ship-burial. Oseberg Style is associated with the beginnings of the Viking age, and was current in the 9th century when Scandinavian settlers began to establish centres of trade and political control in the area of the rivers Dnieper and Volga. The motif has been interpreted as a horse and linked with various legends and mythic figures, including Sigurð's fight with the dragon Fafnir.
