Ca. 700-1100 AD. Viking Age. A thick cast Viking era silver 'Omega' penannular brooch with circular hoop, rounded section, a broad, arrow-shaped pin and two projecting trapezoidal plates bearing elaborate geometric motifs. Brooches were an important part of Viking culture and were worn by both men and women. These items were multifunction with their most basic purpose being clothing fasteners while their more ostentatious role was to serve as a display of wealth. Brooches such as this one were status symbols, tradable goods in lieu of currency, and are often found as grave goods to provision the dead for the afterlife. For more general information on Viking Jewellery see Arbman, H. Birka I: Die Gräber, Uppsala, 1940. Good condition; wearable.Size: L:63mm / W:32mm ; 13.8g; Provenance: Property of a London gallery, previously in old British collection formed in the 1980s.