Neck-ring | Metal,silver | 10th to 11th century AD | The Hunt Collection | PD

This neck-ring is twisted from pairs of silver rods and features solid, dome-shaped terminals. These are of unusual form, in other respect, the objects are typical of various other Viking-age necking. Several hundred silver neck -rings of this date are on record. Most are from Scandinavia itself. A number of examples, however, are from Ireland and Britain (particularly Scotland). In many instances the neck rings occur in hoards – deposits of precious metal deliberately concealed with the intention of later recovery. 

The more elaborate many have served primarily as status objects, though there is evidence that some were manufactured for the storage of silver in the bullion economies of the Viking world. These would have been weighed during economic transactions when they were sometimes reduced to the form of ‘hack silver’ (cut-up fragments of ornaments or ingots) for commercial convenience. Silver ornaments also acquired nicks and pecks, a characteristic Scandinavian method of assessing the quality of the silver and of testing for plated forgeries. One of the pros near the centre of the hoop on this neck ring exhibits one such nick.