clioancientart: Roman Zoomorphic Bronze Horse Fibula (Brooch)CULTURE / REGION OF ORIGIN: Roman Bri
clioancientart: Roman Zoomorphic Bronze Horse Fibula (Brooch) CULTURE / REGION OF ORIGIN: Roman BritainDATE: 1st - 3rd Century ADDIMENSIONS: 3.2 cm (1.25 in.) long, 2.5 cm (0.98 in.) tallLINK: http://www.clioancientart.com/catalog/i475.htmlDESCRIPTION: A very uncommon zoomorphic Roman bronze horse brooch modelled in the round. Unlike the vast majority of Roman zoomorphic brooches from Britain and elsewhere, which are modelled as flat plates decorated on one face, this horse brooch is fully modelled in the round, with rather angular, toy-like features. The animal’s head is schematically modelled to show its face„ with a single large projection at top to represent its upright ears. The chest is large, with a catch plate dropping down from it. The animal’s body is narrow, with a single ridge at the center, and the coiled pin is attached to the animal’s rear underside. The actual pin that extends horizontally from the original coil is a modern replacement in patinated copper wire. The surfaces are dark green with some earthen highlights and a thick patina. Overall well preserved.PROVENANCE: Oxfordshire, UK metal detecting find, declared not treasure and legally exported. Although found in England this example may have been a Continental import; see COMPARISONS notes below.COMPARISONS: The type is not well documented but both Hattat and the Richborough Collection offer some insights. A Visual Catalogue of Richard Hattat’s Ancient Brooches, Oxbow Books, Oxford, 2007, includes one quite similar but incomplete example, possibly with a hinged rather than coiled pin, described as Continental in origin, 2nd to 3rd Century, while Roman Brooches in Britain, a Technological and Typological Study Based on the Richborough Collection, The Society of Antiquaries of London, 2004, lists one example, #354, described as “remarkable”, “unusual” and “such an individual piece that no date or origin can be suggested”. -- source link