Description

Summary: 2 Early Saxon applied saucer brooches, copper with mercury gilding. Each has a central rock crystal with anthropomorphic designs of chasing creature in a ring around the rock crystal. Outside this are chevron shapes filled with face of anthropomorphic designs, on reverse pins are missing, both catch plates present, textile remains evident. From the pagan Saxon cemetery called 'Black Patch' at Blacknall Field, Pewsey, Wiltshire, excavated by Ken Annable and the Wiltshire Archaeological and Natural History Society, 1969-1976.

Research results

A piar of Early Medieval saucer brooches with central rock crystal settings, found in grave 55 in the Blacknall Field Cemetery, Pewsey, excavated by Ken Annable and the Wiltshire Archaeological and Natural History Society, 1969-1976. The brooches were buried with a mature woman, aged around 40+. The brooch is decorated in Salin's style I, a decorative style which originates in southern scandinavia, and often depicts complex arrangements of stylised humans and animals. These brooches show a group of four style I animals chacing eachother in the band around the crystal, with human masks watching them from the chevrons.

This object was examined by Leah Moradi of the University of Exeter as part of her study investigating shamanistic and totemic practices and beliefs in fifth to seventh century Wessex and East Anglia through depictions of humans and animals on contemporary grave goods. Her study found that anthropo- and zoomorphic decoration was most often found with mature women between the ages of around 25 and 40, suggesting that some members of this group may have held a special status. She also notes that anthropomorphic depictions and the use of gold or gilding was more common in the wessex region, whilst depictions of certain animals, especially horses and birds, were far rarer; this may imply regional variation in belief structures, or the traditions of display through which they were presented.