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Griffin Fibula
This fibula, shaped like a griffin, a mythical creature half lion and half eagle, is decorated with twisted gold filigree wires and has a red stone or glass inlay for an eye. It was one of a pair crafted in a workshop in northern France. Originally these paired brooches were worn by women, one on either side of the chest. Its mate belongs to the Hungarian National Museum in Budapest. Similar griffin fibulae have been found in late 6th-century Frankish graves.
Provenance
Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object.
Henry Walters, Baltimore, [date of acquisition unknown] by purchase; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
Exhibitions
| 1984-1987 | Objects of Adornment: Five Thousand Years of Jewelry from the Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore. Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum, New York; Chrysler Museum of Art, Norfolk; Carnegie Museum of Art, Pittsburgh; San Antonio Museum of Art, San Antonio; Philbrook Museum of Art, Tulsa; Honolulu Academy of Arts, Honolulu; New Orleans Museum of Art, New Orleans; Milwaukee Art Museum, Milwaukee; Minneapolis Institute of Art, Minneapolis; Toledo Museum of Art, Toledo; The John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art, Sarasota. |
| 1987 | Jewelry from the Walters Art Gallery and the Zucker Family Collection. The Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore. |
| 1979-1980 | Jewelry - Ancient to Modern. The Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore. |
| 1947 | Early Christian and Byzantine Art. Baltimore Museum of Art, Baltimore. |
Conservation
| Date | Description | Narrative |
|---|---|---|
| 4/19/1984 | Treatment | cleaned |
Geographies
France (Place of Origin)
Measurements
1 x 1 1/2 x 5/16 in. (2.5 x 3.8 x 0.8 cm)
Credit Line
Acquired by Henry Walters
Location in Museum
Centre Street: Third Floor: Migration and Early Medieval Art
Accession Number
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
57.571