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Lot 1047

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Anglo-Saxon Bronze Openwork Key

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Circa 9th-11th century AD A cast bronze casket key with transverse suspension loop, openwork elliptical bow, toothing on the lower edge of the bit. Bronze, 7.93 grams, 54 mm (2 1/4") From an important Scottish collection; found Catterick, Yorkshire, UK. The beads were recovered from the Catterick area (Yorkshire") which is usually identified as the site of the late 6th or early 7th century battle of Catraeth immortalized in the Old Welsh poem Y Gododdin in which a troop of three hundred horsemen from the fortress of Din Eidyn attacked an unnamed but overwhelming enemy force and was wiped out. The case has been made for the British horsemen having set off from the area of modern Edinburgh to attack an Anglian (English") stronghold, although the poem does not mention either the location of the battle or the name of the enemy.

Very fine condition.

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