Convergence of knowledge

The relief brooch from Jorenkjøl, south-western Norway

Abstract

Through an interdisciplinary investigation carried out by four researchers we sought to increase knowledge of Migrationperiod technology and aesthetics. By combining our expertise in archaeology and material science in a detailed inspection of a 6th century brooch, we attempted to understand its life story and the convergence of knowledge behind the elaborate masterpiece. The reverse of the brooch revealed traces of use-wear and a remarkably well-preserved pin arrangement. The use of raw materials suggests a reorientation among artisans from animal ornaments to metals in the terminal phase of the Migration Period: The aesthetic qualities of our brooch are no longer dominated by the chaotic entangled masses of zoomorphic iconography, but rather replaced by a calmer expression of geometric shapes of contrasting colours and materials which highlight the qualities of the metals.