BROOCH

Gold possible brooch, of early-medieval (probable 5th-century) date.

Description: The object consists of a circular base-plate of gold sheet with a three-dimensional figure of a crouching, four-legged animal (a feline?) mounted along the diameter and buttressed by a pair of supporting zoomorphic heads on either side that rise and curve inwards from the base. The base has a decorative filigree border formed by two beaded wires with a thicker beaded wire soldered between and on top of them, just inside the edge of the disc.

The head of the central animal is bent down to touch the base-plate and has incised, lentoid eyes, a snout marked by a flat median rib, a mouth marked by an incised line, and projecting ears that have been almost flattened by wear; a double groove runs the length of its spine, with six curving triangular groups of incised lines on either side indicating fur.

Seen from the sides the two supporting heads have open fanged jaws and seem to be biting the flanks of the central animal. They have lentoid eyes demarcated by curved, double grooves from the snout. Their short necks are decorated all round with corrugated ridges and emerge from filigree wire circles soldered to the base-plate. Seen from above, however, they have almost the appearance of long-nosed human heads with hair in vertical rows, as the jaws are not visible from this angle. Although the transformation of human into animal forms is a well-attested characteristic of Early Medieval Germanic art, it is doubtful whether it applies in the present case (D. Leigh, 1984, 'Ambiguity in Anglo-Saxon Style I art', Antiquaries Journal, 64, pp. 34-42).

Near the edge on the back are soldered a pierced, narrow, trapezoidal lug, probably for hingeing a pin (now missing), and, opposite and in line with it, the sutb of a second lug which could originally have formed the pin-catch, but which appears to have been cut down. This makes it difficult to be entirely certain that the object is a brooch and not a mount.

Although the dimensions were not stated at the original time of recording, from the photo the diameter appears to be c. 20mm.

Analysis: Surface metal analysis conducted at the British Museum indicated an approximate gold content for the brooch (?) of 76%; it weighs 7.87 grams.

Discussion: Disc brooches formed part of female costume in the early Anglo-Saxon period, but the three-dimensional figures on the Lichfield find are unique for the type. A possible analogy to the design is to be found on a small group of late 5th-century Scandinavian/Baltic region buckles with zoomorphic tongues sometimes flanked by animal or human heads, although it should be noted that these face outwards from the centre; e.g. from Sjorup, Skane, Sweden, Proosa, Estonia, and Snartemo, Norway (B. Salin, 1904, Die altgermanische Thierornamentik, Stockholm, figs. 385 and 388; H. Roth, 1979, Kunst der Volkerwanderungszeit, Frankfurt am Main, fig 196a; B. Hougen, 1967, The Migration Style of Ornament in Norway, Oslo, fig. 29).

A dummy buckle related to this group, with human heads on either side of a tongue ending in either an animal or human head at the back, was found by a metal-detectorist a few years ago in the area of Winchester, Hampshire, and reported to the Winchester Museums Service. Dr M. Axboe notes (in lit.) a further putative parallel in two Nydam Style buckles from Ejsbol South, Denmark, on which pairs of long-nosed zoomorphic heads on the loops curve in towards animal-headed tongues (M. Orsnes, 1988, Ejsbol I. Copenhagen, pl. 57, 1 and 3).

The long-nosed heads also have Scandinavian parallels in the 4th, late 5th and 6th centuries, e.g. a carved wooden head from Vimose, Denmark, on the midrib of a brooch from Gronby, Sweden, and bronze mounts from Loiten, Norward and Skane (Salin, op. cit., figs. 128, 465 and 470-1).

I am grateful both to my colleague Leslie Webster and to Dr Axboe for drawing my attention to a 5th-century, Sosdala Style pendant decorated with two interlaced serpents with similar heads recently excavated at Uppakra, Sweden (B. Hardh, 2000, "Uppakra - a centre in south Sweden in the 1st millennium AB", Antiquity, 74, 640-648, fig. 7).

Three-dimensional animal figures are not common in Germanic metalwork at this time and were probably inspired by Roman models like the late 4th/early 5th-century vase handle in the form of a tigress from the Hoxne hoard, Suffolk (R. Bland & C. Johns, 1993, The Hoxne Treasure. An illustrated introduction, London, pl. on p. 24). A few figures, probably bulls, have been recorded at Gudme, Denmark, and an unpublished, dachshund-like, bronze figure was found recently in the fill of an Anglo-Saxon hut at Bloodmoor Hill, Suffolk (L. Jorgensen et al., eds., 2003, The Spoils of Victory. The North in the shadow of the Roman Empire, fig 7.10e). Three-dimensional birds feature on some quoit brooches of the immediately post-Roman period in Kent (S. Suzuki, 2000, The Quoit Brooch Style and Anglo-Saxon Settlement, Woodbridge, pls. 29-30). The crouching stance of the central animal with its head bent down may be compared with animal motifs on the 5th-century gold collars from Alleberg and Farhestaden, Torslunda, Sweden (Salin op. cit., figs. 499f and 500c-e).

The triple filigree wires of the border are common on northern Germanic gold jewellery and sword fittings, e.g. on brooches from Skodborghus and Elsehoved, Denmark, a disc pendant possibly from Hamburg, Germany, sword pommels from Norway and Sweden, and scabbard mouthpieces from Denmark and Norway; in some cases with a thicker median wire as on the Lichfield brooch (G. Haseloff, 1981, Die germanische Tierornamentik der Volkerwanderungszeit. Studien zu Salin's Stil I, Berlin, pls. 32-38). They also occur on a 6th-century, gold type D bracteate pendant of Scandinavian origin from St Nicholas at Wade, Kent (DCMS Treasure Annual Report, no. 64).

The comparisons noted above indicate that the brooch (?) from the Lichfield district dates from the early Anglo-Saxon period, most probably from the 5th century AD, and is likely to be an imported piece from southern Scandinavia, or perhaps from northern Germany. It would therefore qualify as Treasure under two of the stipulated criteria of the Treasure Act: it is more than 300 years old and the precious metal conent exceeds 10%.

B.M. Ager
Curator
Department of Prehistory and Europe
British Museum

7 June 2005