Carolingian / Viking Age Bronze disc brooch with glass inlay - 17 mm (No reserve price)

"Carolingian / Viking Age Bronze Rosette Disc Brooch with Glass Inlay

Culture / Period: Carolingian / Viking Age
Date / Period: 8th - 10th century A.D.
Material: Bronze with glass inlay
Dimensions: 17 mm
Condition: Good condition

No shipping outside the European Union. Due to complex export regulations concerning cultural goods, this item cannot be shipped outside the EU. Please ensure you have a delivery address within the European Union before placing a bid.

Provenance information:
Object Registration ID: 908

The current owner (S.N.J. S.) purchased the disc brooch with glass inlay from H. vd M. in Leeuwarden, the Netherlands.

The previous owner, H. vd M. of Leeuwarden, stated that the object had been in his collection since the 1990s.

According to the previous owner, the object had previously formed part of a private collection in the Netherlands since before 1990.

No further information concerning the earlier ownership history of the object was available from the previous owner.

Background Information:
Disc brooches were widely used as personal dress accessories in early medieval Europe, combining the practical function of fastening clothing with decorative display. This small bronze example has a distinctive rosette-shaped outline formed by rounded lobes surrounding a raised central setting with a glass inlay. The combination of cast bronze and a contrasting inset element gave even relatively small dress fittings a visually distinctive appearance.

The proposed 8th–10th century dating places the brooch within the Carolingian and Viking Age, a period characterised by extensive interaction across northern and western Europe. Personal ornaments and their stylistic influences circulated through regional and long-distance networks connecting settlements, workshops and trading centres.

Objects of this type belonged to an established tradition of specialised metalworking. The bronze body could be cast and subsequently finished, with the central setting prepared separately to receive its decorative inlay. Such techniques demonstrate the combination of metalworking and decorative craftsmanship employed in the production of early medieval personal ornaments.

Worn as part of everyday dress, brooches offer valuable evidence for personal appearance and material culture during the early Middle Ages. This example forms a tangible connection to the Carolingian and Viking Age and to the people who used such small but carefully decorated objects in daily life."