**Originally Listed At $250**

Northern Europe, Viking / Norse culture, ca. 800 to 1100 CE. A gorgeous pair of temple rings, each made from silver wire bent into hoops, with wrapped thinner silver wire holding a round carnelian bead in place. The beads are both a beautifully deep, almost translucent red with a creamy opaque inclusion. A tenth century Arabian author who had come into contact with the Vikings said that they would do anything to acquire glass and stone beads, and carnelian imported from India was one of the highly prized materials they used to make beads. Beads are the most common items found in pagan Viking graves (after the Vikings converted to Christianity, they generally stopped having grave goods). These would have been treasured items, worn hanging near the temples from a headband to display the wealth of their owner or possibly attached to rings to form earrings. Size of each: 1.2" W (3 cm)

Provenance: private Orange County, California, USA collection

All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back.

A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids.

We ship worldwide to most countries and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience.

#127741

One of the silver wires is lost at its terminal, immediately after the carnelian bead. Patina on surface.