The Great Torc from Snettisham or Snettisham Great Torc is a large

Iron Age The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age ( Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age ( Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostl ...

torc A torc, also spelled torq or torque, is a large rigid or stiff neck ring in metal, made either as a single piece or from strands twisted together. The great majority are open at the front, although some had hook and ring closures and a few had ...

or neck ring in

electrum Electrum is a naturally occurring alloy of gold and silver, with trace amounts of copper and other metals. Its color ranges from pale to bright yellow, depending on the proportions of gold and silver. It has been produced artificially, and ...

, from the 1st century BC. It is one of the finest pieces of early

Celtic art Celtic art is associated with the peoples known as Celts; those who spoke the Celtic languages in Europe from pre-history through to the modern period, as well as the art of ancient peoples whose language is uncertain, but have cultural and styli ...

in a distinctly British Celtic style. It is the most spectacular object in the Snettisham Hoard of torcs and other metalwork found in 1950 near the village of Snettisham in

Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the No ...

, East Anglia. The perfectly intact torc is outstanding for its high level of craftsmanship and superb artistry. Soon after its discovery it was acquired by the

British Museum The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docum ...

Discovery

The

was accidentally found in 1950 by a farmer ploughing a field at Ken Hill near the village of Snettisham. It had been buried with a bracelet and coin, which helped to date the torc to around 75 BC. Many other Iron Age hoards have since been found in the vicinity, but the Great Torc is considered by archaeologists to be the most important find from Snettisham. Declared part of a

treasure trove A treasure trove is an amount of money or coin, gold, silver, plate, or bullion found hidden underground or in places such as cellars or attics, where the treasure seems old enough for it to be presumed that the true owner is dead and the hei ...

soon after its discovery, the torc was purchased by the British Museum with the support of the National Art Collections Fund.

Description

The Great Torc weighs slightly more than and is mostly made of gold alloyed with a small fraction of silver. The torc was made in two ways: 64 complex threads of metal were grouped into ropes and twisted around each other to create the

crescent A crescent shape (, ) is a symbol or emblem used to represent the lunar phase in the first quarter (the "sickle moon"), or by extension a symbol representing the Moon itself. In Hinduism, Lord Shiva is often shown wearing a crescent moon on his ...

shaped necklace; the ends of the torc were cast in moulds with La Tène designs and

welded Welding is a fabrication process that joins materials, usually metals or thermoplastics, by using high heat to melt the parts together and allowing them to cool, causing fusion. Welding is distinct from lower temperature techniques such as braz ...

onto the metal ropes to create the whole composition. Given the large amount of precious metals found at the site, in addition to the sophisticated design of luxurious jewellery such as this, it has been conjectured that the area around Snettisham may have been connected with royalty from the

Iceni The Iceni ( , ) or Eceni were a Brittonic tribe of eastern Britain during the Iron Age and early Roman era. Their territory included present-day Norfolk and parts of Suffolk and Cambridgeshire, and bordered the area of the Corieltauvi to the we ...

tribe, that was based in this part of England at the time.

References

Bibliography

* * * * *{{cite journal, first= I., last= Stead, title= The Snettisham Treasure: excavations in 1990, work= Antiquity-3, volume= 65 , year= 1991 Torcs Ancient Celtic metalwork Prehistoric objects in the British Museum Gold objects Individual items of jewellery

Discovery

Description

See also

References

Bibliography