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Identification and Creation

Object Number
1932.56.25
Title
Fibula (Knotenfibel)
Classification
Jewelry
Work Type
pin, fibula
Date
1st century BCE
Places
Creation Place: Ancient & Byzantine World, Europe
Period
Roman Republican period
Culture
European
Persistent Link
https://hvrd.art/o/303964

Physical Descriptions

Medium
Brass
Technique
Cast, lost-wax process
Dimensions
2.1 x 8.3 cm (13/16 x 3 1/4 in.)
Technical Details

Chemical Composition: XRF data from Artax 1
Alloy: Brass
Alloying Elements: copper, zinc
Other Elements: tin, lead, iron

K. Eremin, January 2014

Technical Observations: The patina is green with light gray accretions. The pin is bent and deformed, and a modern solder join repairs a break where it meets the spring and holds it tight in the catchplate. The surface is partially preserved.

The spring and pin were hammered into shape and inserted into a hole in the broad end of the bow. The bow and catchplate were cast, probably from a model made directly in wax. The finishing of the surfaces is obscured by corrosion products and accretions. The small hole in the head of the bow appears to be a small casting flaw in an otherwise solid casting.


Henry Lie (submitted 2012)

Provenance

Recorded Ownership History
Dr. Harris Kennedy, Milton, MA (by 1932), gift; to the William Hayes Fogg Art Museum, 1932.

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line
Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Gift of Dr. Harris Kennedy, Class of 1894
Accession Year
1932
Object Number
1932.56.25
Division
Asian and Mediterranean Art
Contact
am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu
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Descriptions

Published Catalogue Text: Ancient Mediterranean and Near Eastern Bronzes at the Harvard Art Museums
This fibula (an example of a “Knotenfibel”) has a small trumpet-shaped head that is attached directly to a four-coil spring; the pin may be a modern repair or an ancient pin that does not belong with the object. The bow is slender, circular in section, and decorated with raised discs. Instead of being a folded sheet, the catchplate has a triangular cutout on its side (1).

NOTES:

1. Compare E. Ettlinger, Die römischen Fibeln in der Schweiz (Bern, 1973) 48-54 (type 8), pl. 4.1-4; R. Hattatt, Brooches of Antiquity: A Third Selection of Brooches from the Author’s Collection (Oxford, 1987) 26-29, nos. 748-50; and S. Demetz, Fibeln der spätlatène- und frühen römischen Kaiserzeit in den Alpenländern, Frühgeschichtliche und provinzialrömische Archäologie, Materialien und Forschungen 4 (Rahden, 1999) 27-38, pl. 2.3.

Lisa M. Anderson

Subjects and Contexts

  • Ancient Bronzes

Verification Level

This record has been reviewed by the curatorial staff but may be incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of Asian and Mediterranean Art at am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu