Lot 48A
Northern Europe/Central Asia, Viking period, Russia (Kievan Rus), ca. 10th to 11th century CE. An 18 karat gold cross with a blue stone inlaid into a raised central boss. The arms of the cross widen outward and end in rounded terminals. The cross has been hammered into its form, and light, circular stamps decorate its edges. Attached to the upper arm of the cross is a folded-over gold loop, and attached to that is a delicately-coiled gold loop with two raised loops attached to it, all made from the same piece of gold wire. The blue stone in the center appears dark, but when looked at under bright light, is a grey-blue like a cloudy northern sky. Size: 0.95" W x 1.7" H (2.4 cm x 4.3 cm) (4.3 g)
Found in a field in Kalingrad, now Russia, in the 1950s CE, this gorgeous cross is a relic from one of the most momentous events in northern European history: the conversion of Germanic peoples from paganism to Christianity. The Vikings were some of the last holdouts in an increasingly Christian Europe, and the Vikings who had settled in western Russia saw many missions throughout the 9th and 10th centuries. Christian Slavonic sources somewhat hysterically decried the entrenched paganism of these people, and further contact between members of the Rus and Christians were recorded throughout the early 10th century, with members of the Byzantine court taken by the ruling regent of Rus, Olga of Kiev, who came to visit the Emperor Constantine VII and left with a bishop and priests from Rome. Paganism was once again brought to the forefront by Olga's grandson, Vladimir the Great, who had an idol to the chief deity, Perun, placed on a hill by his palace. However, he was a final holdout, and in the year 986 or 987, he spoke with representatives of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam (supposedly rejecting the latter because of their restriction on alcohol) and, in exchange for a Byzantine bride and a military alliance, he was baptized as a Christian and exhorted his people into the Dnieper River at Kiev for a mass baptism. This is marked as the true end of paganism for the people who were once Vikings in Russia, and this cross is a beautiful reminder of their new devotion.
Provenance: private New York, USA collection
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#124276
- Condition: Gold has not been polished but has been tested. Cord shown in photos is not included.
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| $300 | $999 | $50 |
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| $2,000 | $4,999 | $250 |
| $5,000 | $9,999 | $500 |
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| $100,000 | $199,999 | $10,000 |
| $200,000 + | $25,000 |