Robert M Chapple, Archaeologist

< Table of Contents This belt buckle is made of forged iron and inlaid with silver and either brass or gold. It dates to the period from 600 to 700 AD and may have been made in France, but there appears to be no record of exactly where it was discovered and how. All the V&A’s website can say is that it ‘may well have been found in a grave, buried with its owner’. The decoration is in the form of a series of what I would describe as intertwined serpentine forms. However, the V&A go with ‘fabulous beaked snakes’, a term that is both hilarious and somewhat terrifying. It also reminded me of an actual beaked snake, the rufous beaked snake ( Rhamphiophis oxyrhynchus ) . It is named for its hooked snout, which it uses to dig burrows. In my head, I’ve always associated the snake with the city of Oxyrhynchus , in Middle Egypt, itself famed for the great stash of ancient papyri discovered there by Grenfell and Hunt. In my head, I’d presumed that the snake was in some...

< Table of Contents I just think that this tapestry is marvellous. I could leave that as my only comment on this post and it really would be enough. When it comes to assessing the quality of tapestries, you really only need to know two things. Firstly, the best ones were made in Belgium and, secondly, the high-water mark for production was the 15th century. This example, taking as its subject the Trojan War, sits exactly in that Venn diagram intersection. It was made in the Belgian town of Tournai in the period from 1475 to 1490. In every way, it is the physical manifestation of tapestry making’s ‘sweet spot’. Penthesilea, the Amazon Queen, kneels before Priam, offering her forces to fight against the Greek army. Although we don’t know who this piece was commissioned by, it was in the possession of Charles VIII of France by 1494, when he paid to have work done to it to cover over the heraldic devices of the original owner with his own symbol based around a ray...

The British Museum holds nine items identified as coming from Co Wicklow. The majority of these (4) are assigned to the Neolithic/Bronze Age, followed by the Bronze Age (2). The most common object type represented are axes (2). Only three material types are represented in this assemblage: Stone (5), Metal (3), and Pottery (1). < Table of Contents Neolithic/Bronze Age: Stone items Wicklow macehead 20050501.380 Stone macehead, partly perforated on both sides, round disk shape, damage on one edge, rough surface, brown in colour. http://britishmuseum.org/research/collection_online/collection_object_details.aspx?objectId=1562965&partId=1 Wicklow axe 18431226.219 Polished stone axe with slightly damaged rounded butt, rounded sides and uneven blade. http://britishmuseum.org/research/collection_online/collection_object_details.aspx?objectId=1395593&partId=1 Ballintemple chisel 19890301.143 Stone chisel, pecked. http://britishmuseum.o...

< Table of Contents This fragment of a temple relief from Armant is carved in sandstone and dates to the Ptolemaic period (305 BC to 30 BC). Unfortunately, as the figure is lacking his head it is not possible to identify exactly which deity is represented. Instead, I’m just taken by the fact that this wonderful blue paint has survived so well for over 2000 years.

The British Museum holds eight items identified as coming from Co Kildare. The majority of these (3) are assigned to the Bronze Age, followed by the Late Medieval period (2). The most common object type represented are floors (2). Only three material types are represented in this assemblage: Metal (5), Pottery (2), and Stone (1). < Table of Contents Neolithic/Bronze Age: Stone item Kildare axe 18730602.166 Polished stone axe with flat butt; slight damage at butt end of face. http://britishmuseum.org/research/collection_online/collection_object_details.aspx?objectId=1556848&partId=1 Bronze Age: Metal items Kildare socketed axe 18730602.160 Copper alloy socketed axe; cast. Body cross-section octagonal. Unusual axe as it has a band of five ridges around the lower part of the neck. http://britishmuseum.org/research/collection_online/collection_object_details.aspx?objectId=807564&partId=1 Kildare sword 18761214.130 Copper...