Description:

Northern Europe / Russia, Migration Period / Finno-Ugric / Proto-Viking, ca. 5th to 8th century CE. A cast white bronze (copper alloy with a high percentage of tin) pendant in the form of a long, hooked claw, representing the Perm Animal Style. A drilled perforation through the widest end of the claw would allow this piece to be worn suspended from a necklace or on a belt. Size: 1.5" W (3.8 cm)

The Perm Animal Style is associated with a loosely culturally connected group of people known as the Finno-Ugric peoples who lived in west central Siberia, from modern day Perm north to the Arctic Sea. They freely took artistic influence from those who came before them, like the Scytho-Siberians, and from colonists from the west, like the Vikings, but developed their own distinct style that archaeologists know from graves scattered throughout the taiga. Birds of prey, ungulates like reindeer, canines, and bears abound in their iconography. These zoomorphic designs often focus on individual elements of animals - beaks, feet, mouths, eyes, and, as depicted here, claws.

Provenance: private Orange County, California, USA collection

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#122727

  • Condition: Silvery-green patina, very lightly encrusted. Excellent preservation of form.

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December 5, 2017 7:00 AM MST
Louisville, CO, US

Artemis Fine Arts

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