bead
- Museum number
- 1852,0615.1
- Description
-
Amber bead.
- Dimensions
-
Weight: 0.50 grammes
- Curator's comments
- The cape would have been unsuitable for everyday wear because it would have severely restricted upper arm movement. Instead it would have served ceremonial roles, and may have denoted religious authority.
The cape is one of the finest examples of prehistoric sheet-gold working and is quite unique in form and design. It was laboriously beaten out of a single ingot of gold, then embellished with intense decoration of ribs and bosses to mimic multiple strings of beads amid folds of cloth. Perforations along the upper and lower edges indicate that it was once attached to a lining, perhaps of leather, which has decayed. The bronze strips may have served to strengthen the adornment further.
- Location
- Not on display
- Exhibition history
-
Exhibited:
2021-2022 4 Jun-9 Jan, Halle, Landesamt fur Denkmalpflege und Archaologie Sachsen-Anhalt, The Nebra Sky Disc
2013 7 Aug-14 Sep, Wrexham, Wrexham Museum, Spotlight: The Mold Gold Cape
2013 2 Jul-4 Aug, Cardiff, National Museum of Wales, Spotlight: The Mold Gold Cape
- Acquisition notes
- Found with the Mold gold cape.
- Department
- Britain, Europe and Prehistory
- Registration number
- 1852,0615.1