LOT 1683

Viking Bronze Openwork Box Brooch with Silver Detailing

11TH CENTURY A.D.

2 1/8 in. (95 grams, 55 mm).

Formed as an openwork outer shell, inner container and bottom plate; the upper face with central conical boss and four small satellite bosses each with a silver surface disc; to the outer face four pierced tongue-shaped panels with D-shaped finials proud of the upper face, each with a silvered element to the upper end; the bottom plate with integral catchplate and central void, four attachment pins to the underside; the upper face and sidewall executed in Urnes style zoomorphic openwork; the inner element a plain sheet-bronze container.

Acquired in the 1950s.
Ex private collection, South West England.

Exhibited at the Harwich Museum, Harwich, Essex, UK, 27th August-10th December 2025; accompanied by a copy of a photograph of the artefacts on display.

Cf. MacGregor, A. et al., A Summary Catalogue of the Continental Archaeological Collections, Oxford, 1997, items 1.8,9, for type.

On the Baltic island of Gotland, high-ranking females wore 'box' (or 'drum') brooches to secure their outer garments at the shoulders. The inner container may have been used to hold small valuables.