Iron Age Celts of Britain were the first to develop the open ring brooch, a type that would remain widespread in Great Britain and Ireland through the early Middle Ages. Each terminal of this example in silver is decorated with three stylized masks in the form of birds' or bats' heads, enframing a polished amber.
Open-Ring Brooch
Date: early 800s
Geography: Made in Galway, Ireland
Culture: Pictish or Irish
Medium: Silver, cast and partially gilded; amber cabochons
Dimensions: Overall: 2 1/16 x 3 11/16 x 11/16 x 3 3/4 in. (5.2 x 9.3 x 1.8 x 9.5 cm)
Classification: Metalwork-Silver
Credit Line: Purchase, Rogers Fund, and Gift of J. Pierpont Morgan, by exchange, 1981
Accession Number: 1981.413
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