Viking ear spoon Adelsö, silvered bronze

Product description

This Viking ear spoon is decorated with an intricate knot motif and ends in an animal head in the Borre style. The shaft of the ear spoon is inserted into the animal’s mouth. The original dates back to the 9th century.
Viking women often wore these ear spoons on a long chain or a leather cord, attached to their shield brooches. Frequently, a pair of tweezers and an awl were also attached alongside the ear spoon.
The Viking ear spoon from Adelsö measures 7 x 1.5 cm, matching the original size of its historical counterpart.
The island of Adelsö is located in the middle of Sweden’s Lake Mälaren, not far from the island of Birka. During the Viking Age, it was home to a royal estate from which the nearby Birka was governed. More than 3,000 archaeological finds have been recorded on Adelsö, dating from the Stone Age, Bronze Age, and Iron Age, with the majority belonging to the Viking period. This makes the island a true treasure trove of the past.
Small thorns, awls, and fine bronze tweezers have been used for personal hygiene since the Bronze Age and were even part of medical instruments in Egypt and Rome. These items were also widespread among Germanic and Viking peoples for maintaining hygiene and beauty.

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