Viking Age Silver Axe Amulet

A group of iron keys and a lock; two keys with sith a cruciform head, crimped edges and central void; one with a square head with spur to each angle; one with T-shaped head and vertical spurs; one with a disc finial, square void with rounded edges; one iron barrel padlock with hasp. applied decorative bands to the body. 407 grams total, 9.5-15.5 cm



Acquired 1971-1972. From the collection of the vendor's father. Property of a London, UK, collector.

A silver pendant formed as a miniature bucket with applied filigree bands to the strap handle and body, granules to the median panel of the body and at the junction with the handle. 4.28 grams, 25 mm



Private collection formed in Europe in the 1980s. Westminster collection, central London, UK.

Pendants in the form of miniature buckets have been found in a number of pagan Anglo-Saxon and Viking contexts and are generally made of bronze or iron, with gold examples being rare; three gold examples were found with the hoard from Hoen, Norway. Bronze bucket amulets have been found at Driffield in Yorkshire, and Vimose bog in Denmark, among other places. In form they represent wooden buckets bound with bronze or iron bands which have been found in Anglo-Saxon and Viking graves and are believed to have held mead or ale and were used to replenish the cups from which warriors drank. As amulets they probably represent the ecstatic power of alcoholic drink and the role of women as the dispensers of these precious beverages.

A copper-alloy ring composed of a tapering hoop which is thickest at the bezel, decorated with a deep, faux-twist motif. 3.35 grams, 24.61 mm overall, 18.40 mm internal diameter (approximate size British P 1/2, USA 7 3/4, Europe 16.86, Japan 16)



Private collection formed since in the 1940s. UK art market. Property of an Essex gentleman.