Disk Brooch
Unknown Artist
first half 6th century
Medium
Silver, glass and garnets
Dimensions
Overall: 7/8 x 1/4 in. (2.3 x 0.6 cm)
Classification
Metalwork-Silver
Culture
Frankish
Department
Medieval Art
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of J. Pierpont Morgan, 1917
Accession Number
17.192.33
Art Historical Context
This exquisite Disk Brooch, crafted by an unknown Frankish artisan in the first half of the6th century, exemplifies masterful metalwork of early medieval Europe. Measuring just 7/8 x 1/4 inches (2.3 x 0.6 cm), this petite silver piece is adorned with intricate inlays of glass and garnets, creating a shimmering mosaic effect. Such brooches served as functional fasteners for cloaks or garments while doubling as symbols of status and wealth among the Frankish elite during the Merovingian periodThe technique likely involved cloisonné-style settings—thin silver cells filled with polished garnets an...