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Roman Bronze Brooch
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Item Number: CA-08-82
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CULTURE / REGION OF ORIGIN: Roman Empire; Western Europe
DATE: 1st Century CE.
DIMENSIONS: 5 cm long (2.0 in.)
DESCRIPTION: Intact. Roman bronze “Aucissa” type brooch. The pin is frozen in the open position. The high arched bow has a recess along its length and decorative knob at the foot. The axis bar and knob possibly made of Iron or of a different bronze alloy. Stable, dusty green patina.
PROVENANCE: Formerly in a California private collection through 2002. Acquired on the European art market in the 1990s.
COMPARISONS: Justine Bayley & Sarnia Butcher, Roman Brooches in Britain: A Technological and Typological Study Based on the Richborough Collection, The Society of Antiquaries of London, 2004, Cat. 74-77 for very similar examples. Also, Richard Hattatt, Ancient and Romano-British Brooches, Oxford, 1982, pages 83-85, for the type.
SPECIAL NOTES: The most common type of personal dress accessory from the Roman world is the fibula (or brooch). Before buttons came into widespread use, fibulae / brooches were an essential item for fastening 2 pieces of clothing together. Most ancient brooches were made from bronze, sometimes with coatings of tin, silver or even gold, and some had decorative additions in enamel or black silver sulfide. Because they are fairly sturdy they survive in relatively large numbers. Many catalogs of the different types of ancient fibula have been made but the number of types and regional variations is endless. This example is a fairly early type made in western Europe in the 1st Century. |
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