Anglo-Saxon brooches are a large group of decorative brooches found in England from the fifth to the eleventh centuries. In the early Anglo-Saxon era, there were two main categories of brooch: the long (bow) brooch and the circular (disc) brooch. The long brooch category includes cruciform, square-headed, radiate-headed, and small-long brooch brooches. The long brooches went out of fashion by the end of the sixth century.
The circular brooch form developed from jewelled disc brooches produced in Kent in the early sixth century. In the early Anglo-Saxon era, the circular brooch type included the saucer, the applied saucer, the button, the annular (circular ring form), the penannular (incomplete ring), and the quoit (double ring, one of each of the previous types) brooches. The circular was the most common brooch form during the middle to late Anglo-Saxon era, with the enamelled and non-enamelled circular brooches being the predominant brooch styles. There are a few styles that fall into the miscellaneous category. These include the bird and S-shaped brooch of the early Anglo-Saxon era and the safety-pin, strip, ottonian, rectangular, and bird motif of the middle to late Anglo-Saxon era.
The majority of brooches found in early Anglo-Saxon England were Continental styles that had migrated from Europe. These styles evolved over time in England. In the sixth century, metalworkers from Kent, and eventually other regions, started creating brooches using their own distinctive styles and techniques. The best-known examples of Anglo-Saxon brooches are the Sutton brooch, the Sarre brooch, the Fuller Brooch, the Strickland Brooch, and the Kingston Brooch.
Overview The middle of the fifth century marked the beginning of Anglo-Saxon England. The Anglo-Saxon era consists of three different time periods: The early Anglo-Saxon era, which spans the mid-fifth to the beginning of the seventh century; the middle Anglo-Saxon era, which covers the seventh through the ninth centuries; and the late Anglo-Saxon era, which includes the tenth and eleventh centuries.
The brooches worn in Anglo-Saxon England were decorative clothing fasteners, with the general purpose of joining pieces of clothing together. They typically consisted of a pin, clasp, and spring, which were concealed by the front-facing plate. Depending on the style, the brooch face (or plate) could be undecorated, simply decorated or more elaborately decorated. It would vary in size and shape. These ancient brooches can be divided into two main groups, long and circular forms. Brooches were constructed from various metals, including copper alloy, iron, silver, gold or a combination of metals. They could be made using a variety of techniques, including casting, inlaying or engraving. Casting was a frequently used technique, because many brooches could be made from the same mould.
Brooches of the Anglo-Saxon era were worn primarily by women. According to clothing historian, Penelope Walton Rogers, "For the Anglo-Saxon woman, brooches, pins, clasps and buckles were as essential to her clothing as modern button and zip-fasteners. However decorative their appearance and however much they were used to express social and cultural identity, their primary role was to hold edges of garments together and to control loose flaps of clothing." Although women were the primary users of brooches in the early Anglo-Saxon era, archaeological evidence reveals that brooches were not found as often as a dress accessory in the late Anglo-Saxon period. Circular brooch styles, especially small, disc brooches were an ideal shape and size to function as cloak fasteners. This style of brooch, undecorated, is often associated with men after the beginning of the seventh century.
Chronology The majority of brooches found in early Anglo-Saxon England were Continental styles that had migrated from Europe and Scandinavia. The long brooch is the style associated with early Anglo-Saxon England. Circular brooches first appeared in England in the middle of the fifth century. During the sixth century, craftsmen from Kent began manufacturing brooches using their own distinctive styles and techniques. The Kentish square-headed brooch and the circular (Kentish) jewelled brooches were styles originating in Kent. The circular form was the preferred brooch type by the end of the sixth century.
During the seventh century, all brooches in England were in decline. They reappeared in the eighth century and continued to be fashionable through the end of the Anglo-Saxon era. Brooch styles were predominantly circular by the middle to late Anglo-Saxon era. During this time period, the preferred styles were the annular and jewelled (Kentish) disc brooch styles. The circular forms can be divided generally into enamelled and non-enamelled styles.
A few non-circular style were fashionable during the eighth through eleventh centuries. The ansate, the safety-pin, the strip and a few other styles can be included in this group. Ansate brooches were traditional brooches from Europe migrated to England and became fashionable in the late Anglo-Saxon period. Safety-pin brooches, more abundant in the early Anglo-Saxon period became more uncommon by the seventh century and by the eighth century, evolve into the strip brooch. Miscellaneous brooches during this time period include the bird, the ottonian, the rectangle and the cross motif. The best-known examples of Anglo-Saxon brooches are the Sutton brooch, the Sarre brooch, the Fuller Brooch, the Strickland Brooch, the Kingston Brooch and the silver brooches of the Pentney Hoard.
Early Anglo-Saxon brooches Long brooches
Long brooches, also known as bow brooches, originated from Roman Iron Age bow-shaped brooches. They include several varieties of square-headed brooches, as well as small-long, cruciform, equal-headed and radiate-headed brooches. Longs consist of a head and a foot and a section in the middle called the bow. The bow section curves from the head to the foot, and the angle of the arch can vary depending upon the style. Roman brooches had a much larger bow than Anglo-Saxon brooches. By the fifth century, the brooch bow was just a small bump in the middle.
Square-headed Square-headed brooches typically have rectangular heads, not square as described by their name. The foot is generally lozenge-shaped. This brooch is cross-shaped in some types, with animal ornamentation where the bow and foot connect. The square-heads originated in Scandinavia in the fifth century and spread to England and south into Europe toward the end of the fifth century. In England, there are various types of square-headed brooches, including the great square-head, the small square-head and the Kentish square-head. Square-headed brooches were frequently found in Kent and East Anglian graves.
Great square-headed Great square-headed brooches measure 100-150mm long. They are generally large and heavy brooches. They are the most common brooch style found in high-status female graves in the fifth and sixth centuries. Great square-headed brooches are generally made of copper alloy, and surface treatments of gilding, silvering and tinning are common. These jewellery items are typically decorated in Salin's Style I. Analysis of brooch artefacts has revealed that each square-headed brooch is unique and probably custom made for individuals by traveling craftsmen.
Kentish Square-headed There are two main styles of Kentish square-headed brooch: the Jutish-style and the Continental-style. The Jutish-style brooches closely resemble brooches originating in Jutland, in the amount of animal decoration and often the inclusion of a disc on the bow of the brooch. The Continental-style consists of simpler animal decoration and is usually combined with inset garnets. Both types contain silver or silver-gilt, although the Continental-style brooch was also gilded with copper alloy. These brooches were cast in small and medium lengths, 45-100mm long.
Small square-headed These brooches are smaller versions of the great square-headed brooches. They are typically made from copper alloy, with a small percentage made from silver. They are usually gilded and can have relief decoration. They can be dated from 500 to 575 AD. They are found throughout southern England, but are primarily associated with eastern Kent. These brooches were usually decorated in symbols and cryptic marks instead of the geometric and animal designs associated with the larger square-headed brooches.
Small-long The small-long brooch is similar to the cruciform and the great square-headed brooch. These copper alloy brooches have the greatest number of design variations of Anglo-Saxon brooches created in the early Anglo-Saxon era. The small-long head includes square, trefoil and cross shapes and the foot can be found in triangular, lobed, crescent, bifurcated or lozenge shapes.
Small-longs are predominantly found in East Kingdom of East Anglia, although they are widely found throughout England. They are decorated in simple designs, usually consisting of a small bronze bow. They are similar to the cruciform style brooch style and have been described as an inexpensive substitute to the cruciform brooch. They can be dated from the late fifth to the sixth century. These brooches disappear from Anglian sites earlier than other places in England.
Cruciform Cruciform brooches are fairly common in early Anglo-Saxon England. Cruciform style brooches may have originated in both Europe and Scandinavia during the second half of the 4th century. They are found predominantly in eastern England, from Kent and as far north as York. They were worn from the early fifth to the middle of the sixth century. Cruciform brooches have been found in Anglo-Saxon graves in three separate body locations: two brooches at the shoulders pointing up, two brooches on the chest pointing down and one brooches on the chest pointing across.
A cruciform brooch can be identified by three knobs or terminals on the head of the brooch. Cruciforms are usually cast in copper alloy, with the knobs often made separately. Cruciforms can range in ornamentation from simple to a more elaborate decoration.
Radiate-headed Radiate-headed brooches were popular in sixth century Kent, probably the result of the high number of Frankish people migrating to the region". This brooch style originated on the Continent in Francia. Radiate-heads are typically made from copper alloy with a small percentage being made in silver. Their distinguishing characteristic is a semi-circular head plate with ornamented knobs or terminals radiating outward. The brooch head has been found in triangular and oval shapes. The foot is typically triangular or lozenge-shaped.
Supporting-arm
The supporting arm brooch is a T-shaped brooch. It dates to the early Anglo-Saxon era, 400 to 450 AD. This brooch style evolved from Roman brooches, but it also displays Germanic characteristics. According to the Portable Antiquities Scheme database, "The ‘supporting arm’ is in fact wings, each with a perforated lug on the reverse to hold the pin bar, around which the spring is wrapped. There can be a third or even a fourth perforated lug in the centre. The foot is normally short and slightly flared, with transverse grooves and bevelled edges."
Equal-arm