Fragments of a silver neck ring

These four neck ring pieces are part of the large Viking Age silver hoard found at Burray in Orkney deposited between around 997 and 1010. Like the rest of the silver in the hoard, they were used as silver bullion in economic exchanges.

Two end pieces (missing their hooks) and two middle portions survive of this poorly preserved neck ring. It was made of three pairs of twisted rods. The technique of twisting silver rods into neck rings and bracelets was popular amongst Scandinavians.

In the Viking world, silver and gold were used as a medium of exchange, weighed on balances. Silver neck and armrings almost always occur in Viking hoards, not graves, suggesting their economic potential was as important as their ornamental use.

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