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Celtic, Ireland

Neck ring (torque), ca. 1300-1000 BCE

Description

Maker

  • Unknown

Culture

Celtic

Title

Neck ring (torque)

Year

ca. 1300-1000 BCE

Medium

Gold

Materials/Techniques

Materials

  • gold

Dimensions

Diameter: 16.5 cm (6 1/2 inches)

Place

Ireland

Type

  • Jewelry

Credit

Gift of Drs. Arnold-Peter C. and Yvonne S. Weiss

Object Number

1999.80

Exhibition History

Exhibition History

Recent Acquisitions

February 18 - April 16, 2000

This rare and perfectly preserved gold torque will surely become a favorite with the Museum's audience for its elegant beauty and technical virtuosity. It was made during the Middle Bronze Age in Ireland, then a center of gold jewelry production. Torques may have been used as ceremonial jewelry or as a special form of currency. They were often found in hoards (groups of valuable objects often buried for safekeeping) in sites in Ireland, Britain, and France.

This is possibly the only intact torque of its type in the United States today. It extends the range of the Museum's jewelry collection into an earlier period and another part of the ancient world, broadening knowledge of the ancient gold industry and jewelry-making. Although the twisted neck ring looks simple, its mode of manufacture remains elusive. With help from the Museum's unique resource, RISD's Jewelry and Light Metals Department, it may be possible to replicate this rare object, thus providing a better understanding of its construction.

Ancient Greek and Roman Galleries

This rare and perfectly preserved gold torque of fine and tightly twisted circular forms hails from the Bishopsland Phase of the European Bronze Age (1350–1000 BCE). It may have been a neck ornament, as at this time objects made of gold were usually fashioned for personal ornament or ritual use. This torque shows no signs of wear, indicating that it was likely used as ceremonial jewelry, possibly for a cult of the dead. Another theory suggests that torques may have been a form of currency based on their weight in gold. Most torques were found in Ireland, Britain, and France. Although the exact archaeological context for this Irish gold torque is unknown, it was most likely found in a hoard or buried with the deceased.

Use

The images on this website can enable discovery and collaboration and support new scholarship, and we encourage their use. This object is in the public domain (CC0 1.0). This object is Neck ring (torque) with the accession number of 1999.80. To request high-resolution files or new photography, please send an email to imagerequest@risd.edu and include your name and the object's accession number.

Feedback

We view our online collection as a living documents, and our records are frequently revised and enhanced. If you have additional information or have spotted an error, please send feedback to curatorial@risd.edu.

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