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LOT 1633
Viking Age Gold Elfshot Pendant
9TH-11TH CENTURY A.D. OR EARLIER
3/4 in. (1.30 grams, 19 mm).
Comprising a D-shaped gold cap with integral loop above, inset glass bead.
ProvenanceEx property of a late Japanese collector, 1970-2000s.
This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.
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.
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AUCTIONS:
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Viking Age Bronze Ring with Cabochon
9th-12th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £104
Comprising a slender hoop with oval bezel set with an amber-coloured glass cabochon in claw setting. 3.05 grams, 24.31 mm overall, 17.63 mm internal diameter (approximate size British O 1/2, USA 7 1/4, Europe 15.61, Japan 15)
Ex German art market, 2000s. Acquired from an EU collector living in London. From the collection of a Surrey, UK, gentleman. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato. -
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Frankish Silver-Gilt S-Shaped Bird Brooch with Garnets
5th-6th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £3,120
S-shaped plate brooch formed with a profile bird-head finial at each end with inset garnet cabochon eye, hatched panels and inlaid garnet cloisons; pin-lugs and catch to reverse. 7.58 grams, 30 mm
Private collection formed in Europe in the 1980s. Westminster collection, central London, UK. This lot has been cleared against the Art Loss Register database, and is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.
During the mid-sixth century the S-brooch, along with the disc brooch, became popular. These were made primarily of gilded silver embellished with garnet inlays or in garnet cloisonné. Early forms of S-shaped brooches appear in graves in Scandinavia throughout the fifth century and in Europe during the first decades of the sixth century, and reached the height of their popularity during the latter half of that time. They were widespread across Europe and are found in central and western Europe, Italy, Scandinavia and Anglo-Saxon England. They generally take the form of an S-shaped body with heads at either end facing in opposite directions. The heads are generally depicted as birds but examples are known of unidentified animals with splayed open jaws, possibly dragons or wolves. The use of the head imagery is consistent with the aesthetic tendencies associated with the northern, Pagan Germanic world. -
Scandinavian Viking Silver Ring with Stamped Decoration
9th-11th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £546
With a flat-section hoop expanding at the bezel, tapering ends; decorated with two sets of opposed punched triangles with pellets. 7.3 grams, 24.7 mm overall, 19.55 x 22.49 mm internal diameter (approximate size British V, USA 10 1/2, Europe 23.77, Japan 22)
From the private collection of a London gentleman, from his grandfather's collection formed before the early 1970s. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.
