Drawings of Anglo-Saxons

ANGLO-SAXON DISCOVERY

Drawings of objects

Button Brooches

Drawing of button brooch

Button brooches are basically small saucer brooches, which were often decorated with a face type pattern. The faces appear to be male faces.

This type of face decoration was popular in Anglo-Saxon Oxfordshire in the later fifth and sixth centuries.

Button brooches have been found in graves in pairs and on their own, which suggests they may have been worn in a variety of ways to fasten clothes, not just for fastening women's dresses.
Button brooches from Brighthampton Oxfordshire (AN1909.489i-ii)

See more examples of button brooches in the virtual gallery
(case 2 )

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