Ring Brooch
c. 1225-75 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Brooches were used to fasten garments together, usually around the neck. The ring brooch is the most common type of medieval brooch to have survived, and is found in a wide range of sizes and decoration. From around 1250, the fashionable new Gothic style included naturalistic leaves, fruit and flowers. These appeared in sculpture and decoration throughout Europe. In this brooch an applied wreath of grapes and vine-leaves has been set to wind around the tall collets (or collars) holding the gems. The result enhances the visual impact of the stones; garnets and sapphires were often used together to contrast their brilliant red and blue tones.
Object details
| Category | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | Gold, garnet, sapphire, niello |
| Brief description | Ring brooch, gold, set with garnets and sapphires, France, 1225 -75 |
| Physical description | Ring brooch, gold, garnet, sapphire, niello.The obverse fitted with eight high settings, now fitted with six garnets (two garnets missing), and four sapphires in double settings, all embellished with a wreath of applied stylized vine-leaves and bunches of grapes in cut and stamped work. The reverse decorated with a band of foliage on a niello ground. |
| Dimensions |
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| Subjects depicted | |
| Summary | Brooches were used to fasten garments together, usually around the neck. The ring brooch is the most common type of medieval brooch to have survived, and is found in a wide range of sizes and decoration. From around 1250, the fashionable new Gothic style included naturalistic leaves, fruit and flowers. These appeared in sculpture and decoration throughout Europe. In this brooch an applied wreath of grapes and vine-leaves has been set to wind around the tall collets (or collars) holding the gems. The result enhances the visual impact of the stones; garnets and sapphires were often used together to contrast their brilliant red and blue tones. |
| Bibliographic references |
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| Collection | |
| Accession number | 547-1897 |
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| Record created | December 15, 1999 |
| Record URL |
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