Romano antiguo bronce Broche romano-celta con cabezas de caballos - 35 mm

“Ancient Roman Bronze Swastika Fibula with Stylised Horse Heads – Almgren 232 Type

Culture / Period: Ancient Roman, Provincial Roman
Date / Period: circa 3rd–4th century A.D.
Material: Bronze
Dimensions: 35 mm
Condition: Good condition

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Provenance information:
Object Registration ID: 989

The current owner (S.N.J. S.) purchased the swastika fibula with horse heads from R.N. in Katwijk, the Netherlands.

The previous owner, R.N. from Katwijk, stated that the object had been in his collection since the 1990s. According to the previous owner, the object had previously been in a private collection in the Netherlands since the 1990s.

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

Background Information:
This bronze brooch can be identified more specifically as a Roman swastika-shaped, or tetraskelion, fibula with stylised horse-head terminals, a form classified within the Almgren 232 group. Comparable archaeological examples consist of four curved arms radiating from a central point, each terminating in a stylised horse's head. The present example displays the characteristic concentric ring-and-dot ornament at the centre and on the individual heads. The reverse retains its fastening construction, including the iron pin.

The identification is supported by published archaeological research on Roman swastika fibulae with horse-head decoration. This particular form is especially associated with the Danubian provinces and neighbouring regions. Documented examples are known from Dacia, Moesia, Dardania, Pannonia and eastern Noricum, extending towards north-eastern Italy. Archaeological finds also occur at Roman military sites. The type is particularly characteristic of the later Roman Imperial period, with published examples principally dating to the 3rd and 4th centuries A.D.

The term “swastika” in this archaeological context refers solely to the ancient geometric form of the object. The motif is many centuries older than its modern political appropriation and occurs in numerous ancient cultures. The four rotating arms create a dynamic radial composition, here further transformed through the addition of horse heads. Although rotating cross motifs have sometimes been interpreted in relation to solar symbolism, the precise symbolic meaning of an individual Roman fibula cannot be established with certainty. It is therefore preferable to describe the concentric decoration as ring-and-dot ornament rather than to state definitively that it represents the sun.

The horse heads are an important typological feature rather than an incidental decoration. Maurizio Buora's archaeological study specifically examines the distribution of Late Roman swastika fibulae with four horse heads, while the established Almgren classification places horse-head examples under type 232. A closely comparable Roman bronze example described by Christie’s likewise has four stylised horse heads forming the arms of a swastika and is dated to the 4th–5th century A.D.

Such fibulae combined ornament with a practical function: they were worn as dress fasteners. Their manufacture in cast bronze, followed by the finishing and application of punched or engraved concentric decoration, places them within an organised tradition of provincial Roman small-metal production. Their distribution across several provinces demonstrates how distinctive forms of personal ornament circulated through the interconnected military and civilian communities of the Roman frontier regions.

The revised dating to circa the 3rd–4th century A.D. is more consistent with the published chronology of horse-head swastika fibulae than the previously proposed 1st–2nd century date. As a functional item of personal dress combining a distinctive Roman-period geometric form with stylised equine imagery, this fibula provides a tangible connection to the material culture and personal appearance of the later Roman provincial world.”