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Details
LOT 0313
Viking Silver Gripping Beast Pendant
9TH-11TH CENTURY A.D.
1 3/8 in. (8.44 grams, 35 mm).
With integral loop; the openwork plaque with banded border and four panels, internal stylised zoomorph with hatched panel to the hip, gripping three-fingered hands to the body and border, two detailed feet, clearly visible facing mask below the loop with pellet eyes. [No Reserve]
Provenance
From the collection of a North American gentleman, formed in the 1990s.
Literature
Cf. Korshyn, V.E., Yazicheskiye Priveski Drevniye Rysi X-XIV Vekov, Moscow, 2013, items K-4.
Footnotes
There is a class of discoid pendants with banded borders and contorted figures found in the hinterland of the Baltic region, associated with the influence of Scandinavian settlers. The design of these items recalls specific elements of Scandinavian art - for example, the 'gripping hands' motif is a feature of the Oseberg Style named after the famous Norwegian ship-burial. Oseberg Style is associated with the beginnings of the Viking age, and was current in the 9th century when Scandinavian settlers began to establish centres of trade and political control in the area of the rivers Dnieper and Volga. The motif has been interpreted as a horse and linked with various legends and mythic figures.
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Zoomorphic brooches were a long lived tradition in Germanic communities, including amongst Anglo-Saxons and Scandinavians. Most types appear to have fallen out of use in the 11th century, except the ones linked with Christian symbology.
