Timeless are pleased to offer a perfectlly preserved Viking penannular brooch, dating from the 12th-14th centuries A.D.

 

The brooch has been worked in bronze to form a twisted, round-section shank, scrolled finials and a flat pin. The term penannular, meaning 'almost round', refers to the circular shape and missing section of the shank which would have allowed the owner to 'spin and lock' the brooch in place, thus forming a very efficient clasp.

 

In fact, the penannular design was so effective that it changed little from the late iron age until the high medieval period - a span of well over 1500 years; and the brooches themselves were so hard-wearing that pre-Roman penannular brooches have been discovered in Anglo-Saxon burials.