Home Objects Svenska Svenska
Home Boundless meetings Family and hierarchy Midgard Belief and traditions 46: Different concepts combined in objects 47: New and old symbols melded into hybrids 48: Brooches to read and understand 49: Many kinds of Christianity 50: Magical amulets 51: Attributes of the gods 52: Relics became traded goods 53: Offerings in boundary areas gave protection 54: Cult worship in the boundary areas 55: Men of the church took power and position 56: Three gods of fertility 57: The Aesir – the gods of the aristocracy 58: Staff-bearers could see into the future The living and the dead Divine craftwork Trading and raiding Waterways Town-like centres Christian monuments

Listen

Box-shaped brooch

Gilded bronze box brooch with silver niello details and gold filigree decoration. The brooch has a number of decorations which reflect both Old Norse religion and Christianity. This is one of the box brooches with the richest variety of motifs to be found. The lid is crowned with a silver plated, niello decorated knob resembling a well, which is surrounded by four beast of prey heads. The fields in between are covered by abstract, human-like figures in gold filigree, with long tassels of hair at the sides which they grip with their hands. The edges of the lid and the sides of the box brooch are encircled by carved rope patterns of silver niello. The sites are divided up into four fields with 'traditional' chip-carving, looping animal decoration. Between each field there is a wide, pointed, openwork niello decorated silverplate with triquetra patterns. Found "under a stenvast [stone field boundary wall]", Krasse, Guldrupe Parish, Gotland.

Download image

Object number: 120461_HST

<   1 of 2  >