  Merovingian (Frankish) Looped Fibulae (mid-6th century)/ referred to as Visigothic Early medieval Europe. Mid-sixth century C.E. Silver gilt worked in filigree, with inlays of garnets and other stones.
Content: General of Fibulae: -consist of a body, a pin, and a catch -Usually with elaborate designs Specific (Merovingian): -Material: silver gilt-worked in filigree with inlaid garnet and other stones -decorated with garnets, amethyst, and colored glass -a great example of barbarian metalwork and cloisonné -cloisonné: technique is inlaid semi-precious stones (popular in barbarian art) -Ends of fibulae: the shape of Eagle heads -Garnets: used to decorate the eyes of the eagles -the main body of the brooch: little fish -Gems and semi-precious stones: used to decorate the rest of the fibulae -Pendants could have been hung from the small loops on the bottom on each fibulae Context: General of Fibulae: -Fibulae: are brooches (safety pins) that were made popular by Roman military campaigns -Cultural exchanges occurred after antiquity and both groups (barbarians and Romans) copied and shared similar works -Barbarian: non-Roman, nomadic, and illiterate groups traveling throughout Europe during the middle ages -Became very popular in the early Middle Ages and commonly found in barbarian grave sites -Gives the cultural information about barbarians (little-written documents) -Found through many different ethnics groups and with trade/ expose had influences of the styles of one another -All serve the same function purpose: because of different cultures/ time periods decorated differently -Similar cultures tend to have similar artist designs while diverse cultures didn't -Shows that distinct cultures living within larger empires and kingdoms (very common during the Middle Ages) Specific (Merovingian): - a popular motif in barbarian art of the middle ages: EAGLES (found on the work) -Eagles (originally pagan symbol of the sun) used by Imperial Rome and an emblem to Saint John -the way these were made: solder wires onto a metal base and fill the areas those wires created with stone Function: -a brooch or a pin for fastening clothing (safety pin) -expensive objects to the commission: the owners wanted these objects to resonate with their identity -buried with the dead: showed their status and who they were as people ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- FOR MORE INFORMATION AND CONTEXT:  Byzantine Fibula (430)
Lombardic Fibula (mid-6th century)  -stylized variation of the crossbow fibula (remember diverse ethics groups all had their own spin to their fibulas!) -Material: gilded and inlaid with niello = a black metal alloy -Lombardic fibulae: incisions are hatched lines (popular decoration technique) -Historical Context: Although they conquered Byzantine land, they were overthrown by Charlemagne (king of the Franks) Therefore with this context over the centuries, they assimilated into Roman Culture and adopted Catholicism -Shows the adoption of crossbow fibula style (Roman) with their own twist (so even though they left off a lot their own culture behind/ legal producers still have some part of their roots) |
