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LOT 0354
Viking Age Bronze Tortoise-Type Brooch Group
9TH-11TH CENTURY A.D.
3 - 3 1/8 in. (140 grams total, 77-80 mm).
Comprising three shallow-domed plate brooches each with low-relief zoomorphic ornament and a narrow ledged rim; to the reverse, a small catch and T-shaped pin-lug; one with textile remains in situ. [3]
ProvenanceFrom the collection of a North American gentleman, formed in the 1990s.
LiteratureCf. Arbman, H., Birka I: Die Gräber, Uppsala, 1940, pl.61.
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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LOT 0354
Viking Age Bronze Tortoise-Type Brooch Group
Estimate £1,000 - 1,400€1,160 - 1,620 (for guidance only)$1,350 - 1,890 (for guidance only)
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Viking Age Silver Facing Bird Pendant
Circa 9th-12th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £4,160
Zoomorphic, in the form of a bird with wing and feather detailing highlighted in filigree, the suspension tube forming the bird's head, curved beak below, beaded filigree collars and coiled wire to each arm of the suspension loop. 5.46 grams, 43 mm
Private collection formed in Europe in the 1980s. Westminster collection, central London, UK. -
Viking Age Bronze Knife Handle
9th-10th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £143
Composed of a tubular bronze handle with engraved interlaced geometric design. 59.4 grams, 10 cm
From the collection of a North American gentleman, formed in the 1990s.
A similar knife can be seen in a female grave from Tuukkala, Mikkeli, Finland, still with its blade and housed in a magnificent bronze openwork scabbard. Knives were used by men and women in many different ways, including for war. -
Viking Age or Earlier Hacked Gold Trade Ingot
Circa 10th century A.D. or earlierSold for (Inc. bp): £3,120
A slightly bent irregular bar of hacked gold with rectangular cross-section, showing evidence of compression and fracture to each end, some subtle transverse lines on both of the main surfaces. 14.43 grams, 51 mm
Found whilst searching with a metal detector on 1st May 2022 on a Romano-British site in Cambridgeshire, UK, by Trevor Singleton. Accompanied by a handwritten letter from the finder. Accompanied by a copy of the British Museum's Portable Antiquities Scheme (PAS) report no.CAM-D819F0 and workflow review page where it states: 'There is evidence that the bar fragment has been cut from both ends, suggesting Early Medieval (Viking Period) parallels.'
This ingot was declared under the Treasure Act and subsequently determined by the British Museum to be of 'undiagnostic' date and therefore returned to the finder. Trevor Singleton maintains that it was recovered from a known Romano-British site, while in neighbouring fields Early Medieval (Late Saxon & Viking) items have been recovered and logged with the Portable Antiquities Scheme. Ingots of gold and silver were regularly produced in the Early Medieval period when trade took place between monetised economies (Anglo-Saxon England, Francia, Frisia) and their non-monetised neighbours in southern Scandinavia (West, 1998; Blackburn, 2011). Ingots were a convenient means of storing wealth which could be converted into display items (weapon fittings, clothing fasteners, tableware) or used to gild silver and bronze items (Hårdh, 1996).
