Anglo-Saxon Pins and Fasteners For Sale
Anglo-Saxon dress fasteners follow trends in contemporary costume, and are often quite closely datable. Wrist-clasps of several types are an early Anglian fashion which is found along the eastern seaboard from Northumberland to Kent; it derives from contemporary 5th c. artefacts found in Denmark and Norway. Wrist-claps sets may comprise two male (hookd) segments, two female segments and two gusset-plates which strengthen the cloth at the closure. Pins – made from copper-alloy, silver, gold and bone – are a perennial means of fastening layers of clothing to each other, as well as securing shawls and head-coverings. Hooked tags become common in the 8th c., mainly triangular or discoid in form with a ‘spike’ bent back to form the hook. Fasteners of all types must have been produced in quantity b Anglo-Saxon craftsmen, and they are a relatively abundant artefact type. We are pleased to be able to offer a selection of the better examples for sale through these pages.
Customers and site-visitors may have noticed that the Anglo-Saxon site pages have been revised. As part of our ongoing programme of improving the quality and reliability of our site, all of the ‘Saxon’ pages have been amended in the light of further detailed research. We aim to roll this out across the rest of the site in due course. Please check back for updates.
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| | Anglo-Saxon 'Polyhedral Head' Dress Pin 023357 | Anglo-Saxon 'Polyhedral Head' Dress Pin Silver, 2.41 grams, 62.48 mm. Circa 6th-9th century AD. A cast silver hipped dress pin with round-section shaft and integrally cast polyhedral head. Reference: Webster, L. & Backhouse, J. The Making of England. Anglo-Saxon Art and Culture AD 600-900, London, 1991, p.98 item 69(m). Extremely fine condition. Provenance: from an old English collection formed in the 1970's. | £95.00  |  |
| | Anglo-Saxon 'Collared' Dress Pin 020859 | Anglo-Saxon 'Collared' Dress Pin Copper-alloy, 3.11 grams, 65.84 mm. 6th-9th century AD. A cast dress pin comprising an elliptical-section shaft, D-section collar and carinated knop. Reference: West, S. A Corpus of Anglo-Saxon material from Suffolk, East Anglian Archaeology 84, Ipswich, 1998 item 11 from Barham. Very fine condition. Provenance: found East Yorkshire, England. | £25.00 |  |
| | Anglo-Saxon 'Hooked Cross' Hooked Tag 020476 | Anglo-Saxon 'Hooked Cross' Hooked Tag Silver, 0.75 grams, 19.92 mm. 7th-8th century AD. A discoid plate developing into a round-section recurved hook. The plate bears a cast design featuring a cross formed from four loops (a four-way knot) the voids of the upper two loops being pierced to form the attachment points for the hook. Hooked tags were used to fasten a variety of openings on Anglo-Saxon costume, including leg-bindings, purses and cuffs. The rounded form seen on this piece developed alongside the triangular type of tag. The decoration suggest a 7th or early 8th century date for the piece and a possible ecclesiastical context. Reference: MacGregor, A. & Bolick, E. A Summary Catalogue of the Anglo-Saxon Collections (Non-Ferrous Metals), BAR British Series 230, 1993, p.190 item 32.5. Very fine condition. Provenance: ex Roy Pillington, Louth 1988. | £90.00 |  |
| | Anglo-Saxon 'Guilloche' Form B12 Wrist Clasp 013478 | Anglo-Saxon 'Guilloche' Form B12 Wrist Clasp Copper-alloy, 4.44 grams, 33.15 mm. 5th-6th century AD. An Anglian wrist clasp of Hines's Form B12, a plate with pierced lugs on the rear edge. The plate has a square panel at each end with an incised border of roundels and a central circular depression. Between these is a recessed panel featuring a series of running spirals in a guilloche pattern. The clasp is the female half of a set, attached to the cuff of a woollen garment worn by one of the female Anglian settlers of the post-Roman period. Reference: Hines, J. Clasps-Hektespenner-Agraffen: Anglo-Scandinavian Clasps of the Third to Sixth Centuries AD. Typology, Diffusion and Function. Kungl. Vitterhets Historie och Antikvitets Akademien, 1993. Very fine condition. Provene: found Northants, England. | £40.00 |  |
| | Anglo-Saxon 'Equine Head' Pin Terminal 011264 | Anglo-Saxon 'Equine Head' Pin Terminal Silver, 1.10 grams, 7.94 mm. 7th-8th century AD. The terminal from an Anglo-saxon clothes- or hair-pin, cast in silver. The equine head with glass eyes extends to a c-shaped neck with transverse banded 'mane' detailing in niello inlay. Reference: for zoomorphic pin-terminals see Webster, L & Backhouse, J. The Making of England. Anglo-Saxon Art and Culture AD 600-900, London, 1991, p.98 fig.69(h). Published: Hammond, Brett. British Artefacts, volume 2 - Middle Saxon & Viking, Witham, 2010. Good very fine condition. Ex Lord Mc Alpine collection. This antiquity is accompanied by an XRF metal test certificate from Oxford X-ray Fluorescence Ltd. | £850.00 |  |
| | Anglo-Saxon 'Ring-Headed' Ring Pin 019687 | Anglo-Saxon 'Ring-Headed' Ring Pin Silver, 6.03 grams, 53.72 mm. 7th-9th century AD. A delicate dress pin comprising a slender, tapering shaft rising to a scrolled head; a small silver ring (ext. dia. about 9 mm) is held within the scroll. Reference: cf. the scroll-headed pin from Pakenham in West. S. A Corpus of Anglo-Saxon Finds From Suffolk, East Anglian Archaeology 84, Ipswich, 1998 p.237 fig.8. Extremely fine condition. Provenance: from the Lord McAlpine of West Green collection [with old sales label]. | £450.00 |  |
| | Anglo-Saxon 'Filigree-Headed' Pin 019688 | Anglo-Saxon 'Filigree-Headed' Pin Copper-alloy, 5.40 grams, 75.48 mm. 7th-9th century AD. A delicate dress pin of classic Middle Saxon 'hipped pin' profile with a slight bulb above the central zone. The head is a hollow globe decorated with three large filigree hoops above the equatorial filigree band, each hoop containing three smaller hoops with granulation. The design below the equator mirrors that in the upper hemisphere. The pin is surmounted by a knot in silver filigree. Reference: West. S. A Corpus of Anglo-Saxon Finds From Suffolk, East Anglian Archaeology 84, Ipswich, 1998 p.127 fig.3. Extremely fine condition. Provenance: from the Lord McAlpine of West Green collection [with old sales label]. | £295.00 |  |
| | Anglo-Saxon 'Globular-Headed' Pin 019689 | Anglo-Saxon 'Globular-Headed' Pin Silver-gilt, 4.94 grams, 68.98 mm. 7th-9th century AD. A sturdy dress-pin with parallel-sided shaft and globular head decorated with three filigree hoops above and below the equator which bears a filigree band; each hoop contains three smaller hoops with a central granulation, and there are additional hoops with granulation next to the equator. A small additional loop is placed at the junction of the shaft and head. Reference: West. S. A Corpus of Anglo-Saxon Finds From Suffolk, East Anglian Archaeology 84, Ipswich, 1998 p.127 fig.3. Extremely fine condition. Provenance: from the Lord McAlpine of West Green collection [with old sales label]. | £495.00 |  |
| | | Anglo-Saxon 'Discoid' Hooked Tag 018200 | Anglo-Saxon 'Discoid' Hooked Tag Silver, 0.66 grams, 21.04 mm. 8th century AD. Hooked tags were used to fasten a variety of openings on Anglo-Saxon costume, including leg-bindings, purses and cuffs. The present piece comprises a discoid plate with two pierced attachment points, developing into a round-section hook. The rounded form seen on this piece developed alongside the triangular type of tag. The use of silver and the lack of decoration suggest an early 8th century date for the piece. Reference: MacGregor, A. & Bolick, E. A Summary Catalogue of the Anglo-Saxon Collections (Non-Ferrous Metals), BAR British Series 230, 1993, p.190 item 32.5. Very fine condition. Provenance: from an old English collection formed before 1950. | £70.00 |  |
| | Anglo-Saxon 'Form B20 Billeted Bar' Wrist Clasp 017656 | Anglo-Saxon 'Form B20 Serrated' Wrist Clasp Gilt copper-alloy, 6.76 grams, 37.47 mm. 5th-6th century AD. An Anglian wrist clasp of Hines's Form B20, its plate is dominated by the two Style I profile heads on the outer edges. The central motif is a plain panel with incised border, it rear edge formed with three triangular lobes. The front edge is decorated with a ribbed border with four larger ribbed panels. The 'eye' was lost in antiquity and some of the gilding is present. The two attachment lugs are partly present on the reverse. Wrist clasps were a long-lived fashion among Anglian women, used in pairs to close the cuffs of their long-sleeved shifts. The Style I heads and bold triangular panels recall the decoration of the s6th century word hilt from Snartemø (Norway). Reference: Hines, J. Clasps-Hektespenner-Agraffen: Anglo-Scandinavian Clasps of the Third to Sixth Centuries AD. Typology, Diffusion and Function. Kungl. Vitterhets Historie och Antikvitets Akademien, 1993. Previously published in Bonhams Antiquities Catalogue, London, 28th October 2009. Very fine condition. Provenance: found in East Anglia in the 1970s. | £55.00 |  |
| | Anglo-Saxon 'Lobed' Hooked Tag 018138 | Rare Anglo-Saxon 'Lobed' Hooked Tag Copper-alloy, silver, 3.56 grams, 27.08 mm. 8th-10th century AD. Hooked tags were used for a variety of fastening functions in Middle Saxon England: garters, leg-bindings and items of clothing as well as bags and pouches. This is a good example of the evolved form of tag cast as a sub-triangular plate with a hooked extension. The plate's decoration comprises a series of discoid lobes around the edge, two of which are pieced for attachment to the garment while the others are embellished with a punched roundel. The central panel is discoid with inlaid silver wire in a volute pattern with scrolled ends. Reference: MacGregor, A. & Bolick, E. A Summary Catalogue of the Anglo-Saxon Collections (Non-Ferrous Metals) BAR British Series 230, 1993, p.190 item 32.5 and West. S. A Corpus of Anglo-Saxon Finds From Suffolk, East Anglian Archaeology 84, Ipswich, 1998 p.121 fig.-35,36. Good very fine condition. Provenance: found near Grantham, Linconshire, England. | £140.00 |  |
| | Anglo-Saxon 'Animal-Headed' Pin 011262 | Excessively Rare Anglo-Saxon ‘Animal-Headed’ Pin Silver-gilt, 1.89 grams, 66.47 mm. 8th century AD. A beautifully modelled Anglo-Saxon hipped dress pin used to fasten the outer garments of high-status females. Pins of this type were in vogue in the 8th century. The design of the gilded animal head terminal is derived from Insular Style manuscript illustrations such as those in the Lindisfarne Gospels. The eyes are tiny fragments of black glass. The shaft is silver, the bulb placed centrally, with a slight collar above and below to increase its purchase on the textile. A very similar pin is held by the British Museum (M&LA 1989,3-3,1) and published by Webster & Backhouse. Reference: Webster, L. & Backhouse, J. The Making of England. Anglo-Saxon Art and Culture AD 600-900, London, 1991, p.226 item 182. Published: Hammond, Brett. British Artefacts, volume 2 - Middle Saxon & Viking, Witham, 2010. Very fine condition. Provenance: ex Lord Mc Alpine collection. This antiquity is accompanied by an XRF metal test certificate from Oxford X-ray Fluorescence Ltd. | £1,950.00 |  |
| | Saxon 'Polyhedral' Pin Terminal 017113 | Saxon ‘Polyhedral’ Pin Terminal Silver gilt, 2.50 grams, 12.25 mm length. 7th-8th century AD. A finely made terminal to the standard form of hipped pin used in dress fastening, with the gilt intact over much of the surface. The terminal is polyhedral with lozengiform sides and interstitial triangles. Each face is moulded with an inner panel containing degraded residue (perhaps of bone) within a gilded frame. On the upper surface the lozengiform panel contains a reserved floral motif consisting of four conjoined lozenges. The shaft of the pin has a gilt collar. Reference: Webster, L & Backhouse, J. The Making of England. Anglo-Saxon Art and Culture AD 600-900, London, 1991, p.98. fig.69m. Very fine condition. Provenance: from an old English collection, not found in the UK. | £125.00 |  |
| | Anglo-Saxon 'Globular-Headed' Pin 017130 | Anglo-Saxon ‘Globular-Headed’ Pin Copper-alloy, 5.26 grams, 105.90 mm. 7th-9th century AD. A standard form of Mid-Saxon hipped pin with a carinated globular head placed directly onto its shaft. Reference: Webster, L. & Backhouse, J. The Making of England. Anglo-Saxon Art and Culture AD 600-900, London, 1991, p.89 item 67(h). Very fine condition. Provenance: found Cambridgeshire, England. | £30.00 |  |
| | Anglo-Saxon 'Ovoid-Headed' Pin 010997 | Viking ‘Ovoid-Headed’ Pin Silver, 6.70 grams, 103.62 mm. 8th-9th century AD. An unusual form of Viking hipped pin with a slight median bulb. The head is conical with rectilinear incisions in a 'swirled' arrangement. Reference: West. S. A Corpus of Anglo-Saxon Finds From Suffolk, East Anglian Archaeology 84, Ipswich, 1998 p.119 fig.3-10. Extremely fine condition. Provenance: from an old English collection, not found in the UK. This item is accompanied by a positive XRF ancient metal test certificate from Oxford X-ray Fluorescence Ltd. | £125.00 |  |
| | Anglo-Saxon 'Poppy Head' Pin 018111 | Anglo-Saxon 'Poppy Head' Pin Copper-alloy, 3.38 grams, 44.23 mm. 5th-6th century AD. A dress pin used to fasten light garments such as shawls and scarves. The head is formed as a cone above a flattened D-section bulb extending to a narrow collar and shaft. Reference: MacGregor, A. & Bolick, E. A Summary Catalogue of the Anglo-Saxon Collections (Non-Ferrous Metals), BAR British Series 230, 1993, p.183 item 31.2. Very fine condition. Provenance: found Wiltshire, England. | £25.00 |  |
| | Anglo-Saxon 'Domed Head' Pin 011181 | Anglo-Saxon 'Domed Head' Pin Silver, 12.69 grams, 121.40 mm. Circa 6th-10th century AD. A clothes pin with a sturdy tapering shaft connected to a ‘poppy’ terminal surmounted by acollet containing (organic?) material. The median is encircled by a plain, D-section collar and the lower zone of the head extends to a fine band wrapped tightly around the upper end of the shaft. Reference: MacGregor, A. & Bolick, E. A Summary Catalogue of the Anglo-Saxon Collections (Non-Ferrous Metals), BAR British series 230, Oxford, 1993 item 31.2. Good very fine condition. Provenance: from an old English collection formed in the 1980's. This item is accompanied by an XRF ancient metal test certificate from Oxford X-ray Fluorescence Ltd. | £650.00 |  |
| | Anglo-Saxon 'Trewhiddle Style' Zoomorphic Pin 011340 | Excessively Rare Anglo-Saxon 'Trewhiddle Style' Zoomorphic Pin Silver, 2.92 grams, 77.50 mm. 8th century AD. The pin has a flat, tongue-shaped head connected by a rectangular collar to the shaft, which has a bulbous ‘rib’ 21 mm from the point. The upper portion of the head has radiate detailing and a Trewhiddle Style zoomorph. Below this is a recessed panel with a ropework-effect motif, within an elliptical panel with lateral flanches towards the base. Reference: Webster, L & Backhouse, J. The Making of England. Anglo-Saxon Art and Culture AD 600-900, London, 1991, p.96-7 fig.69e-f. Published: Hammond, Brett. British Artefacts, volume 2 - Middle Saxon & Viking, Witham, 2010. Extremely fine condition. Ex Lord McAlpine collection. This antiquity is accompanied by an XRF metal test certificate from Oxford X-ray Fluorescence Ltd. | £1,750.00 |  |
| | Anglo-Saxon ‘Zoomorphic Head’ Hipped Pin 011339 | Anglo-Saxon ‘Zoomorphic Head’ Hipped Pin Silver, 2.76 grams, 65.90 mm. 7th-8th century. The standard type of garment- and hair-fastener from Middle Anglo-Saxon times is the ‘hipped’ pin with a bulbous thickened section towards the point. This example features a beautifully modelled animal head formed with two lateral ribs for the ears, roundels on the cusp of the upper edges for eyes and two (drilled?) indentations beneath for nostrils. The mouth is indicated by lateral slashes. A small collar strengthens the point where the head is attached to the shaft. The design of the animal’s head is reminiscent of 7th-8th century Insular Art, for example the Lindisfarne Gospels. Reference: Webster, L. & Backhouse, J. The Making of England. Anglo-Saxon Art and Culture AD 600-900, London, 1991, p.97 item 69(g). Published: Hammond, Brett. British Artefacts, volume 2 - Middle Saxon & Viking, Witham, 2010. Extremely fine condition. This antiquity is accompanied by an XRF metal test certificate from Oxford X-ray Fluorescence Ltd. | £1,150.00 |  |
| | Anglo-Saxon 'Opposed C-Scroll' Hooked Tag 014412 | Rare Anglo-Saxon 'Hidden Face' Hooked Tag Silver, 1.11 grams, 23.45 mm. 8th century AD. The plate is decorated with opposed c-scroll volutes outlined with niello inlay. Two piercings close to the outer edge form the attachment points. The design as a whole forms a stylized male face with curly moustache. The hook is complete. Reference: Webster, L & Backhouse, J. The Making of England. Anglo-Saxon Art and Culture AD 600-900, London, 1991, p.236 fig.199. Published: Hammond, Brett. British Artefacts, volume 2 - Middle Saxon & Viking, Witham, 2010. Extremely fine condition. Property of a gentleman, believed to have been found in Hertfordshire in the early 1990's. | £175.00 |  |
| | Anglo-Saxon 'Pear-Shaped' Hooked Tag 014130 | Anglo-Saxon 'Pear-Shaped' Hooked Tag Copper-alloy and silver, 0.94 grams, 19.37 mm. 8th century AD. The pear-shaped tag’s plate is decorated with a silver plate expanding-arm cross and pierced by two attachment points. The triangular hook is complete. Reference: MacGregor, A. & Bolick, E. A Summary Catalogue of the Anglo-Saxon Collections (Non-Ferrous Metals) BAR British Series 230, 1993, p.190 item 32.5. Published: Hammond, Brett. British Artefacts, volume 2 - Middle Saxon & Viking, Witham, 2010. Very fine condition. | £49.00 |  |
| | Anglo-Saxon 'Sub-Rectangular' Hooked Tag 014450 | Anglo-Saxon 'Sub-Rectangular' Hooked Tag Silver, 0.64 grams, 18.77 mm. 8th century AD. The plate is decorated with four sub-triangular elements which connect with a sub-rectangular internal ring. A tongue-shaped projection extends towards the hook, which is complete. Reference: MacGregor, A. & Bolick, E. A Summary Catalogue of the Anglo-Saxon Collections (Non-Ferrous Metals) BAR British Series 230, 1993, p.190 item 32.5. Published: Hammond, Brett. British Artefacts, volume 2 - Middle Saxon & Viking, Witham, 2010. Very fine condition. Property of a gentleman, believed to have been found in Hertfordshire in the early 1990's. | £95.00 |  |
| | Anglo-Saxon 'Polyhedral' Pin Terminal 009921 | Anglo-Saxon 'Polyhedral' Pin Terminal Silver, 3.19 grams; 16.89 mm. Circa 7th - 9th Century A.D. A high-status decorative finial - probably from the top of a carved bone pin. The sides and top are lozengiform with an incised niello-filled lozenge design, with triangular interstitial panels. The socket is pierced for a retaining rivet. Reference: West, S. A Corpus of Anglo-Saxon Material from Suffolk, East Anglian Archaeology, Ipswich, 1998, p.253 fig.6. Published: Hammond, Brett. British Artefacts, volume 2 - Middle Saxon & Viking, Witham, 2010. Very fine condition. Provenance: from an old collection, ex N. Campbell. | £90.00 |  |
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