Northern Europe, Viking or Norse culture, ca. 8th to 11th century CE. A pair of beautiful and nearly identical silver (85-90% silver) wire bracelets, each of an elegant presentation comprised of a single strand of twisted silver in a knotted and looped style with broad, flat, triangular terminals studded with large, raised granulations on their exterior sides. Size of largest: 3.15" W (8 cm); total weight of both: 99.9 grams; precious metal quality: 85-90% silver.
The important Viking metalworking shops correspond to their great trading ports and proto-urban centers - Birka, Helgo, Sigtuna, and Lund in Sweden, Ribe, Haithabu (Hedeby), and Fyrkat in Denmark, and Kaupang and Trondheim in Norway. Silver was the principal currency of the Viking world, which stretched from Russia to northern Canada at the height of their influence. In many places, the Vikings kept silver not as coins, but as jewelry, a wearable currency form that was not subject to the authority of a monarch or mint.
Provenance: private Davis collection, Houston, Texas, USA; ex-Gerhard Hirsch Nachfolger Auction 277-280 - Ancient Objects, Coins, and Medals (February 8-11, 2012, lot 1215); ex-private Austrian collection
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#140009
Condition
Terminals are slightly bent and the terminal of one has a small puncture/tear. Beautiful patina on surface.