Featured 1,100-Year-Old Brooch

@Any Jewelry , Don't know if you have seen this ...... What a beautiful find !

March 30th, 2020

https://news.artnet.com/art-world/buried-treasure-british-museum-1816764

 

Not AJ, but that is incredible.

 

Amazing. The next story on that link is interesting too.

 

The brooch mounting is incredibly modern
From the back only, I’d never guess it was so ancient!!!

 

I'm glad you said that as I was thinking the same thing!

 

Thank you for thinking of me, Firemandk, I saw it before, and it is stunning.

It is also one of the periods in jewellery history I particularly like, because the jewellery often combines old international techniques like early Byzantine niello and cloisonné, with innovations and local styles. How local is often a matter of a lot of research, because in those days jewellery travelled nearly as much as it does now. It is always fascinating. And because jewellery is always so personal, it is such a strong link between people over centuries.

 

Absolutely. Which only goes too show, dating hinges and clasps is incredibly difficult. Saying something was only invented after such and such a date isn't always true.
Maybe I should start collecting 1960s matchbooks.

 

Just as a game, if this brooch was in front of you, what date would you all have put it at and why?
I'd have put it late 19thC because of the C but the squiggly hinge would have had me wondering.

 

1960s Riveted brooch system

 

Lol, Good thing we don't work for the British Museum

Weird. How did I quote something that isn't there?

 

I would have thought slightly older than it actually is, ca 700-750ish, because of the bosses, niello, and designs. The C-clasp is the earliest type of clasp, already used for cloak pins etc.
Rivets were often used to fasten details to early jewellery, so it doesn't really surprise me that much.

 

What, where?

 

You never know, they could turn out to be early Anglo-Saxon also!

 

I had the same reaction; designs keep coming back around. The back construction would have been done last week.

 

Absolutely "wow." Double spring pin is original, do you think?

 

Since they could make this,I don't see them having a problem with a simple pin.