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Details

LOT 0259

Viking Age Gold Hammer Amulet

9TH-12TH CENTURY A.D.

3/4 in. (1.57 grams, 20 mm).

A sheet-gold hammer amulet formed by doubling a single gold sheet; bifacial pellet ornament tracing the perimeter of the hammer and a central motif mimicking the broad plan of the weapon; suspension loop formed within the fold at the neck.

Provenance

Acquired 1980-2015.
Ex Abelita family collection.

Footnotes

The techniques used to manufacture this pendant (working sheet gold and granulation) had been in the repertoire of the Scandinavian goldsmith since the Iron Age and formed part of the manufacturing process for bracteate pendants and other jewellery items (Reynolds Brown, K. et al., From Attila to Charlemagne. Arts of the Early Medieval Period in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 2000, p.15-16, 310-1).

CONDITION

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AUCTIONS:

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LOT 0259

Viking Age Gold Hammer Amulet

Sold for (Inc. bp): £715

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