BORRE CHAIN SPREADER / CHATELAINE - 5305B
In the Viking Age, chain spreaders / bead hangers / chatelaines were worn in pairs, hung below oval or round brooches. They were used to display strings of colored glass beads and other treasured charms and ornaments. Small tools could be hung from them such as scissors, tweezers or needle cases. They may also be worn singly when used as a chatelaine to carry favorite tools and amulets, hung below a brooch or dangling from a separate chain. They came in many styles from practical and simple to highly ornate.
This elegant piece is made in the Borre Style (circa 1000 AD)with interlocking gripping beasts in ring-chain motif supporters. Rings allow it to serve as a chain spreader or a bead hanger for a treasure necklace or as a chatelaine for bells, charms and small tools. It is modelled after an original artifact found in the Viking settlement of Novgorod. Bronze
52 mm W x 48 mm H
2.125 in W x 2. in H