Brooch ID Any one

[the-BANGOR-citizan]

Any Brooch genius people out there got an idea of date. just over 20mm in size and is Silvered or silver.

[Tafflaff (Rob)]

Looks like an older version of this.

[the-BANGOR-citizan]

HELL is this stupid Rob but you did not find that.

[Tafflaff (Rob)]

No I've not found one ..lol, but that one looks very similar to yours.

[Val Beechey]

Always nice to find something a bit different.  I don't think it is a brooch though. It looks more like a mount fitting on the back.


Val

[the-BANGOR-citizan]

Could be right Val. Left it soaking overnight and gave it a light clean this morning and here are some more pics. The crud is calcification not dirt and do not want to do any damage.

[the-BANGOR-citizan]

Another Pic

[the-BANGOR-citizan]

and another

[Val Beechey]

You may be right in taking extra care with cleaning. I looked at your new picies and thought 'Viking'

Of course, as is often the case, I may be wrong. But having looked around the internet, briefly, I came up with the attached.
Unfortunately no picies with this article but there are plenty out there.


The s-shaped single or double-headed snake design far predates the Urnes style. In fact, we have found examples of this design from as early as the Migration and Merovingian periods (4th-8th century) on brooches spread from Franconia to Sweden. Many of our best examples come from the settlement in Uppåkra, Sweden.

According to Martin Rundkvisk, these brooches or fibulae served two primary functions in the Swedish context: to hold together pieces of clothing as well as to decorate the body. They were almost always worn by women, though one Vendel (Iron Age) gold foil depicts a male figure wearing a similar (figure-eight) brooch beneath his neck. Rundkvisk explains that “a man wearing a snake brooch would constitute a case of gender transgression, which would not be too much of a surprise in a Late Iron Age ritual context” (105). However, the primary purpose of these brooches seems to have been that of functional (female) fashion ornamentation, and Rundkvisk declines to comment on the possible symbolism behind Scandinavian snake jewelry.

Fingers crossed.

Val

[the-BANGOR-citizan]

DOC HAVE YOU SEEN THIS YET. STILL NO POSITVE  DATE. 

[nobby]

Looking at the shape and size of it would it sit snuggley on a walking stick ?

[Chef Geoff]

As Val says it definitely had either a backing plate or was directly mounted to something. Given that it has a striking resemblance to a "love knot" but with snakes then I'd go for late Victorian/Edwardian

[the-BANGOR-citizan]

Thankyou THE SAGE What I suspected but am usually wrong.