MOUNT

Early medieval gold filigree mount fragment. Length 14.73mm, width at flattened end 8.5mm, width at loop end 6.0mm, thickness 4.4mm, internal diameter of loop 2.6mm, weight 1.17g. TREASURE REPORT: Gold fragment from a larger object. Round ?attachment loop, embedded in and forming one end of a rectangular frame, which expands and flattens out at the other end, where it is broken off. The remainder of the original object might, for instance, have been round or cross-shaped. The fragment was assembled from several parts, at least the loop, a backing sheet for the rectangular section, another sheet merged with it and the three-dimensional decoration described below. The rectangular part of the object is very ornate and decorated three-dimensionally with filigree, now partly squashed, twisted wire and 5 minute gold balls. The expanded, flat end is plain and looks like it it was only a backing, perhaps for a set gem. The circular loop contains two parallel grooves and, unusually, is set with its opening aligned to the main axis of the object, rather than perpendicular to it. This would have made any use as a pendant awkward and speaks against such an interpretation. It seems possible that rather than being a suspension loop at the top of the object, this fragment formed the bottom and something else was suspended from it. Viking filigree earrings (Graham-Campbell 1980, cat. no. 334 and p. 270 no. 334) or trefoil brooches Eilbracht 1999, cat. no. 298 and Tafel 27) from Scandinavia sometimes show such or similar arrangements. There are, however, no traces of wear to support such a suggestion. As the loop is separately formed and resembles attachment loops of seventh century pendants and bracteates, it may have been reused. Discussion: The object is difficult to date and its use is unclear. Filigree and granulation such as this seem to be typical of the later phases of the early middle ages. For example, a small gold plate with twisted wire and gold granule decoration from Winchester comes from a 10th-century context (Backhouse et al. cat. no. 78) can be quoted. A gold fitting from Sutton-on-Forest, North Yorks., also contains beaded gold wire and granule decoration and can be dated to the second half of the 9th century (Treasure Annual Report 2000, no. 82; I am grateful to Dr. A. Gannon for drawing this object to my attention.). Filigree was also popular in the Viking age, both in Scandinavia and in the British Isles (cf. above, Wilson 1964 Plate XIX.28 and Eilbracht 1999). Although it seems clear that the object is early medieval, it is not possible to give an exact date. A date between about the end of the 8th and the second half of the 10th centuries seems plausible. Non-destructive X-ray fluorescence analysis of the surface of the object, indicated a gold content of 78-80%, a silver content of 16-18% and a copper content of 3-5%. Dimensions: H 1.5cm; W 0.8cm max.; D 0.4cm max.; Weight 1.17 grams Note: This find qualifies as Treasure under the Treasure Act of 1996. Bibliography Backhouse J., Turner D.H., Webster L., The Golden Age of Anglo-Saxon Art 966-1066 (Bloomington, Indiana 1984). Eilbracht H., Filigran- und Granulationskunst im wikingischen Norden. Zeitschrift fü r Archäologie des Mittlelalters Beiheft 11 (Cologne 1999). Wilson D.M., Anglo-Saxon ornamental metalwork 700-1100 in the British Museum. Catalogue of Antiquities of the Later Saxon period vol. 1 (London 1964). Sonja Marzinzik Curator, Insular Early Medieval Collections Department of Prehistory and Europe The British Museum