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Mount: M.11-2006

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Object information

Current Location: In storage

Maker(s)

Production: Unknown

Entities

Categories

Description

Copper alloy, cast; the front chased and gilt.

Circular disc; copper alloy, cast; the front chased and gilt. On the front, five empty circular settings for gemstones: one large central setting and four smaller settings at the cardinal points close to the rim. The brooch is pierced adjacent to 3 of the 4 perimeter settings by 3 small holes, indicating re-use; the holes of similar size and near-identical placement, each pierced clockwise of its setting through the top of the outermost interlace panels and just inside the circular perimeter border.

Around the central setting there are three concentric circles of small rectangular punch marks, outside which is a zone of interlacing animal ornament of the so-called Germanic Style II, comprising a procession of four interlocked animals, edged by three more concentric circles Beyond these is a border of four panels of different highly-stylized interlace ornament representing the undulating body of a snake-like creature, whose jaws are clamped around itself. The panels are separated by the four smaller circular mounts and edged by two concentric punched bands.

The reverse is undecorated. 4 short projections behind the centre of each gem setting represent the base of rivets: the longest in the centre plus three shallow stubs behind the perimeter settings. A fifth rivet is missing: the fourth perimeter setting has a central squarish hole with rounded corners where a rivet has come out.

Notes

History note: No find provenance or prior history; Charles Ede Limited, 20 Brook Street, london W1K 5DE

Legal notes

Given by the Friends of the Fitzwilliam Museum

Measurements and weight

Diameter: 7.5 cm

Acquisition and important dates

Method of acquisition: Given (2006-10-09) by The Friends of the Fitzwilliam Museum

Dating

7th Century
Circa 600 CE - 700 CE

Note

The mount is comparable to the pair with interlace ornament from Allington Hill, Cambridgeshire (now in the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, and the Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, Cambridge). The five settings are empty, but would originally have held decorative bosses, which would have been made from shell or bone, and may have had a small garnet roundel in the middle. The interlacing ornament is of exceptionally fine execution, and the outer zone is of unusual layout.

School or Style

Anglo-Saxon

Components of the work

Front Surface composed of gold
At Centre Height 0.9 cm
Decoration

Materials used in production

Copper alloy

Techniques used in production

Casting : Copper alloy, cast, the front, chased, and gilt

Inscription or legends present

  • Text: 2208
  • Location: Stuck onto the reverse, but removed after accession
  • Method of creation: Printed in black
  • Type: Label
  • Text: 96.61
  • Location: Stuck onto the reverse
  • Method of creation: Hand-written in black ink
  • Type: Label

References and bibliographic entries

Related exhibitions

Identification numbers

Accession number: M.11-2006
Primary reference Number: 134029
Stable URI

Audit data

Created: Saturday 6 August 2011 Updated: Thursday 25 August 2016 Last processed: Friday 8 December 2023

Associated departments & institutions

Owner or interested party: The Fitzwilliam Museum
Associated department: Applied Arts

Citation for print

This record can be cited in the Harvard Bibliographic style using the text below:

The Fitzwilliam Museum (2024) "Mount" Web page available at: https://collection.beta.fitz.ms/id/object/134029 Accessed: 2024-11-05 21:05:32

Citation for Wikipedia

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{{cite web|url=https://collection.beta.fitz.ms/id/object/134029 |title=Mount |author=The Fitzwilliam Museum|accessdate=2024-11-05 21:05:32|publisher=The University of Cambridge}}

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