Gold Bracteate Papers by Morten Axboe
Andrew Richardson et al (eds): Transitions and Relationships over Land and Sea in the Early Middle Ages of Northern Europe., 2023
On two gold bracteates: One found in 1835, which has later disappeared and has not been mentioned... more On two gold bracteates: One found in 1835, which has later disappeared and has not been mentioned in archaeological literature, and one which appears in several publications, although it most likely has never existed.
Sivs festskrift, 2023
A brief presentation of gold bracteates which most likely had been prepared to be melted down.
The European Archaeologist 74, 2022
In December 2020, metal detectorists found a Migration Period gold hoard at Vindelev in East Jutl... more In December 2020, metal detectorists found a Migration Period gold hoard at Vindelev in East Jutland. Vindelev is c. 10 km north of the city of Vejle and c. 8 km northeast of the well-known site of Jelling with its royal monuments from the tenth century AD. Subsequent excavation by VejleMuseerne (Laursen and Ravn 2022; Ravn 2022) established that the gold objects which had been uncovered were all found in the plough layer. Although the finds had been moved by agricultural activities, most of them were found within a restricted area relating to a Migration Period long-house. Most likely the objects were deposited as a single hoard. The find consists of four Roman medallions (multipla), 13 bracteates, a pendant with glass inlays, and a scabbard mount; together these objects count for 794 g gold (Axboe 2021). See Figure 25. The Vindelev hoard counts as the first find in Scandinavia with more than one Roman medallion. In addition, apart from the Polish Zagórzyn hoard, the Vindelev hoard is the first recorded hoard which has included both medallions and bracteates. During the period 335-36 to 383 AD, three of the medallions were issued in Trier by Constantine I, Constans, and Gratian, respectively, while the fourth medallion was issued in Thessaloniki by Valentinian I (Horsnaes 2022). Gold bracteates are generally divided into four types: A-bracteates imitating the imperial portraits of Roman coins, B-bracteates showing one or more persons in full, C-bracteates with a large human head over a more or less horse-like quadruped, and D-bracteates featuring a highly stylized dragon-like creature. Alongside the main motif, A-, Band nd C-bracteates may also show smaller animals, human figures, and symbols (like swastikas and triskelions), as well as inscriptions with runes or imitations of Roman letters.
Fund&Fortid 2021 No. 4, 2021
A preliminary popular presentation of a Migration Period gold hoard with Roman medallions, gold b... more A preliminary popular presentation of a Migration Period gold hoard with Roman medallions, gold bracteates, a pendant, and a scabbard mount. Danish text with summary in English.
Hines, Høilund Nielsen & Siegmund (eds.): The Pace of Change. Studies in Early-Medieval Chronology, 1999
This paper offers a brief preliminary presentation of my bracteate chronology, which is treated i... more This paper offers a brief preliminary presentation of my bracteate chronology, which is treated in full in 'Die Goldbrakteaten der Völkerwanderungszeit - Herstellungsprobleme und Chronologie' (2004). A more detailed discussion of the methods used can be found there, as well as definitions of the variables used and detailed descriptions of the groups resulting from the analyses.
Völker an Nord- und Ostsee und die Franken (Sachsensymposium Mannheim 1997), 1999
The coin collection from the estate of Ericsberg, which has now been sold by auction, was founded... more The coin collection from the estate of Ericsberg, which has now been sold by auction, was founded by D.G.H. Hildebrand (1761–1808) and maintained by his successors, the barons Bonde, up to 1937. It is unknown when the Migration Period gold bracteate in the collection was acquired, as also when and where it was found.
A larger bracteate from the same die is known from Lyngby in east Jutland. Furthermore its loop, being shaped as a straight tube with punched ornament, may point to an origin in southern or central Jutland. The same, rather infrequent type of loop can be seen on a bracteate of unknown provenance which was sold by auction in
2000.
frá haug ok heidni, 2017
A triangular pendant can be shown to be part of a gold bracteate, which originally was the larges... more A triangular pendant can be shown to be part of a gold bracteate, which originally was the largest known from Norway.
Nicolay, 1978
The loop of a large C-bracteate from Øvre Madla in Rogaland, WNorway, in Universitetets Oldsaksam... more The loop of a large C-bracteate from Øvre Madla in Rogaland, WNorway, in Universitetets Oldsaksamling since 1868, could 1977 be shown to represent a hitherto unknown C-bracteate die.
During a metal detector survey in 1995 at the site of the 1876 hoard of nine Migration Period gol... more During a metal detector survey in 1995 at the site of the 1876 hoard of nine Migration Period gold bracteates from Söderby another bracteate was discovered. It had been crumpled when deposited and was carefully documented with silicone rubber casts and electrotypes before unfolding was successfully attempted. The bracteate shows a rich, unique imagery. In lhe central pictorial field a human figure is struggling with a snake, surrounded bv stvlized animals. The border zone shows traces of other animals together with two men, apparently dead, who form a link to several gold foil figures {guldgubbar). The importance of the find is emphasized by its vicinity to Mora Sten (Mora Stone) where Medieval Swedish kings were proclaimed, and to the Långhundraleden, the waterway to Old Uppsala.
B. Hårdh (ed.): Fler fynd i centrum. Uppåkrastudier 9., 2003
"A bracteate with runes from Uppåkra (IK 591 Uppåkra-C) was found 2000 at some distance from the ... more "A bracteate with runes from Uppåkra (IK 591 Uppåkra-C) was found 2000 at some distance from the find spot of IK 587 Uppåkra-C, which thus most likely represents a separate deposition. It had been folded up before deposition (Fig. 1), but has been drawn using a cast (Fig. 2-3). The bracteate shows a braided hair, possibly a royal insigne comparable to the Merovingian reges criniti and a Germanic iconographic equivalent to the imperial diadem also shown on bracteates. It can be typologically dated to the final quarter of the 5th century AD.
The runic inscription reads sima?ina alu. The fifth rune can be read as th or w."
B. Hårdh (ed.): Uppåkra. Centrum och sammanhang. Uppåkrastudier 3, p. 169-174., 2001
In 1999, a C-bracteate (IK 587) with loose rim and loop missing (fig. 1-2) was found in the SE pa... more In 1999, a C-bracteate (IK 587) with loose rim and loop missing (fig. 1-2) was found in the SE part of the Uppåkra settlement area. Its motif variant belongs to a group of closely related bracteates (cf. fig. 3-4) known from five more finds in Scania and three in other areas. These bracteates were most likely produced during the early decades of the 6th cent. AD.
On the beginning of gold bracteate research and Christian Jürgensen Thomsens first bracteate engr... more On the beginning of gold bracteate research and Christian Jürgensen Thomsens first bracteate engravings.
Magnus et al. (eds.): Vi får tacka Lamm., 2001
Like medallion imitations found in Scandinavia, the gold bracteates imitate Roman issues of the f... more Like medallion imitations found in Scandinavia, the gold bracteates imitate Roman issues of the first half of the 4th cent. Medallion imitations are known from 4th cent. graves while the earliest bracteates seem to have been made around the middle of the 5th cent. Recognizable inscriptions and other specific details cannot have been conveyed by the medallion imitations through 100 years. Thus coins issued by Constantine I and his successors still must have been available in Scandinavia when the early bracteates were made.
Ch. Fabech & J. Ringtved (eds.): Samfundsorganisation og Regional Variation. Norden i romersk jernalder og folkevandringstid., 1991
Ancient Portraiture. Acta Hyperborea 4, 1992
Even in antiquity, the importance of classical portraiture
reached beyond the Mediterranean area... more Even in antiquity, the importance of classical portraiture
reached beyond the Mediterranean area. We shall present here a
number of examples of how Roman influence was effective in
Scandinavia in the Iron Age, more precisely in the 5th century and
at the beginning of the 6th century, the period which we call the
Migration Period or the Earlier Germanic Iron Age. We shall also
try to demonstrate that "Roman influences" were not necessarily
simply cases of mechanical copying. The barbarians in Scandinavia
knew and understood the Roman prototypes, and they borrowed only those features which fitted with their world and their notions.
And they probably had certain precise aims in doing so.
In the following we shall look at how a particular form of
amuletic jewellery, the so-called gold bracteates, reflects not
only direct influence from Roman portraiture but also the social
and political processes in Scandinavia that Roman influence must
have contributed to.
Roman Gold and the Development of the Early Germanic Kingdoms. Ed. Bente Magnus, 2001
T. Capelle & C. Fischer (eds.): Ragnarok. Odins Verden, 2005
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Gold Bracteate Papers by Morten Axboe
A larger bracteate from the same die is known from Lyngby in east Jutland. Furthermore its loop, being shaped as a straight tube with punched ornament, may point to an origin in southern or central Jutland. The same, rather infrequent type of loop can be seen on a bracteate of unknown provenance which was sold by auction in
2000.
The runic inscription reads sima?ina alu. The fifth rune can be read as th or w."
reached beyond the Mediterranean area. We shall present here a
number of examples of how Roman influence was effective in
Scandinavia in the Iron Age, more precisely in the 5th century and
at the beginning of the 6th century, the period which we call the
Migration Period or the Earlier Germanic Iron Age. We shall also
try to demonstrate that "Roman influences" were not necessarily
simply cases of mechanical copying. The barbarians in Scandinavia
knew and understood the Roman prototypes, and they borrowed only those features which fitted with their world and their notions.
And they probably had certain precise aims in doing so.
In the following we shall look at how a particular form of
amuletic jewellery, the so-called gold bracteates, reflects not
only direct influence from Roman portraiture but also the social
and political processes in Scandinavia that Roman influence must
have contributed to.
A larger bracteate from the same die is known from Lyngby in east Jutland. Furthermore its loop, being shaped as a straight tube with punched ornament, may point to an origin in southern or central Jutland. The same, rather infrequent type of loop can be seen on a bracteate of unknown provenance which was sold by auction in
2000.
The runic inscription reads sima?ina alu. The fifth rune can be read as th or w."
reached beyond the Mediterranean area. We shall present here a
number of examples of how Roman influence was effective in
Scandinavia in the Iron Age, more precisely in the 5th century and
at the beginning of the 6th century, the period which we call the
Migration Period or the Earlier Germanic Iron Age. We shall also
try to demonstrate that "Roman influences" were not necessarily
simply cases of mechanical copying. The barbarians in Scandinavia
knew and understood the Roman prototypes, and they borrowed only those features which fitted with their world and their notions.
And they probably had certain precise aims in doing so.
In the following we shall look at how a particular form of
amuletic jewellery, the so-called gold bracteates, reflects not
only direct influence from Roman portraiture but also the social
and political processes in Scandinavia that Roman influence must
have contributed to.