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LOT 0336
Viking Age Silver Gripping Beasts Pendant
10TH CENTURY A.D.
1 3/4 in. (12.4 grams, 43 mm).
Composed of an openwork discoid body with integral T-shaped tubular loop; raised gusseted rim enclosing a pair of S-shaped beasts with billetted bodies and comma-shaped tails, enmeshed gripping paws clutching the rim and their own bodies.
ProvenanceAcquired on the European art market in the 1990s.
Ex property of a German gentleman.
Cf. Graham-Campbell, J., Viking Art, London, 2013, item 98; cf. Korshun, V.E., Yazcheskye Priveski Drevnei Rusi X-XIV Vekov, Volume III, Moscow, 2013, items K.6.00-6.02.
FootnotesDespite the long period of overlap of Borre and Jellinge art styles, there are only few examples of their fusion. The principal and most popular motif of the Borre style displays an animal with gripping paws, usually enmeshed in a circular frame, while a typical Jellinge style beast is more slender with long, S-shaped body and ribbon decoration. The most famous example of a pendant featuring a fusion of these styles was found in a hoard from Vårby (Sweden), formed as a circle with a pair of Jellinge-style beasts with ribbon-shaped bodies in profile and heads with open jaws and extended tongues; however, each is provided with gripping paws and an enmeshed body, which are typical features of the Borre style. A few examples of these pendants were also found near the important trading settlement of Gnezdovo, near Smolensk, Russia.
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LOT 0336
Viking Age Silver Gripping Beasts Pendant
Estimate £1,800 - 2,400€2,090 - 2,780 (for guidance only)$2,430 - 3,240 (for guidance only)
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Viking Age Bronze Wolf-Head Strap Distributor
9th-12th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £315
Comprising an outer ring with wolf mask in low relief at the centre. 3.4 grams, 26 mm
Ex property of an American collector; acquired 1980-2000. -
Viking Age Tinned Bronze Openwork Disc Brooch
Circa 10th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £39
Displaying a quatrefoil motif embellished with pellets; remains of pin lug and catchplate to reverse. 29.6 grams, 52 mm
From the collection of a North American gentleman, formed in the 1990s. -
Viking Age Silver-Gilt Filigree Pendant with Conjoined Ravens
9th-11th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £5,460
The upper face decorated with a two-headed filigree raven, raised ropework border, suspension loop with pyramids of granules continuing onto the reverse. 6.26 grams, 42 mm
Private collection formed in Europe in the 1980s. Westminster collection, central London, UK. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate no.203746.
Pairs of ravens were considered auspicious in medieval Scandinavian society. In pre-Christian times, two such birds were the informants of the god Odin, who relayed news of the deeds of men. They were also carrion birds, frequenting battlefields to feast on the bodies of fallen warriors.
