What are gold bracteates?

The Migration Period gold bracteates are small, round pendants that were produced from around the middle of the 5th century to the first third of the 6th century. In Scandinavia, they were often found in hoards (hidden treasures, sacrificial offerings), although some were recovered from settlement areas. On the continent, in England and some peripheral areas of Scandinavia, they derive mainly from women's graves. They were worn individually or in necklaces on strings around the neck. Probably bracteates were used as amulets: their sophisticated and fascinating imagery can generally be interpreted as bringing good luck or warding off evil (Meaning).

The central images are executed in the so-called Animal Style I (Animal Style I), a basic design developed in Scandinavia and used exclusively there during the Migration Period. With the help of these images (Families), which were mostly used supraregional, it is possible to reconstruct relationships between people from very different places and regions. However, the bracteates were produced in many different places, including England and the continent, as evidenced by different techniques, alloys and special designs.

Gold bracteates cannot be dated directly. Their chronological classification is based on hoard finds in which they are associated with objects that can be dated accurately (e.g. solidus coins). Relative dating was also achieved by Morten Axboe (Head-groups). While the medallion imitations, type M, (Types) date back to the 4th and early 5th centuries, bracteate production appears to have exploded around the middle of the 5th century. The end of the bracteate period is probably linked to the great climate catastrophe of the 6th century (Late Antique Little Ice Age, ca. 536/40), which led to the collapse of many cultural phenomena in Scandinavia and later to a complete reorganisation of society with a new material culture in the Vendel/Merovingian period (late 6th/7th c.).