CIRCA EARLY 7TH CENTURY A.D.

Name: AN ANGLO-SAXON GOLD AND GARNET FITTING
Brand: CIRCA EARLY 7TH CENTURY A.D.
Price: 2600.00 GBP
Availability: SoldOut

Price Realised GBP 3,250

Estimate

GBP 2,000 - GBP 3,000

Closed: 27 Jul 2020

Loading details

Try our

AN ANGLO-SAXON GOLD AND GARNET FITTING

CIRCA EARLY 7TH CENTURY A.D.

Price Realised GBP 3,250

Closed: 27 Jul 2020

Price Realised GBP 3,250

Closed: 27 Jul 2020

Details Lot Essay Related Articles More from

2⁵⁄₈ in. (6.6 cm.) long

Found in Pickering, North Yorkshire, June 2012.
Registered with the Portable Antiquities Scheme, ref. no. DUR-17EEA5.

Please note this lot is the property of a consumer. See H1 of the Conditions of Sale.

Conditions of Sale
FAQs
This lot is offered by Christie Manson & Woods Ltd

Brought to you by

Claudio Corsi

A Christie's specialist may contact you to discuss this lot or to notify you if the condition changes prior to the sale.

ccorsi@christies.com +44 207 389 2607

Lot Essay

The quality of this example indicates that it belonged to an individual of high-status. Though the fitting appears to be unparalleled, many examples of Anglo-Saxon goldwork with inlaid garnets are known. The style drew upon the traditions of eastern nomadic peoples as well as on Roman jewellery techniques and the deep red colour of garnets was probably sought after by the Anglo-Saxon elites because it evoked the imperial 'purple' of Rome.

The sophisticated cloisonné design using stepped and concave cells inlaid with garnets may be compared to two East Anglian finds dating from the 7th Century: the Ixworth (Stanton) cross in the Ashmolean Museum and the of Heraclius (613-632 A.D.) in the British Museum ( L. Webster and J. Backhouse, , 1991, nos 11,12).