Works of Art
Bronze Age Bronze Fibula
Period: Circa 1100 - 1000 B.C.
Culture: Bronze Age
Category: Array
Dimensions: Length: 34.5cm; Width: 11.0cm
Price: CHF 43000, USD 43,000
Provenance: German Art Market, acquired in 1999.
Condition: Excellent state of conservation, intact. Beautiful surface with dark green patina.
Description
This jewel belongs to a group of fibulae named "passementerie", which are typical of the end of the Bronze Age north of the Alps and in Eastern Europe.
As well as being a fastening device (pin, spring, hinge), the impressive decoration is made up entirely of bronze wires: four pairs of small, parallel spirals are topped by a spiral of much larger dimensions. According to the archaeologists of these fibulae, who find them most often in necropoleis, they were used not only to as fasteners for the clothing of the deceased, but in time, they came to play a role in magical and religious spheres.
Bibliography
On Prehsitoric cultures in Europe, see:
V. KRUTA, L’Europe des origines, 1992.
For similar type fibula, see:
'Gods and Heroes of the European Bronze Age', Cat expo., p.264, no.186