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Archive for the ‘Metalwork’ Category

Down the rabbit hole to Sutton Hoo

Friday, May 14th, 2021
In 2014, I decided to travel to England again.  Back in 1978 I spent a semester in college in London, and while there saw and always remembered the phenomenal artistry in the Sutton Hoo artifacts at the British Museum.  Jump to 2014: Eli, our second son, asked if he could come.  Well, YES (except, food bills!  Teenage boy! kaChing!) !   How many 16 year old boys want to travel with their mom?  One that REALLY wants to travel LOL!  We had the trip of a lifetime!  First stop on Day 1 was the British Museum. You can visit online and see great pics.  The helmet at left is a re-creation based on the original artifacts (the silver had rotted over the millennia).  The buckle shows the unbelievable metalwork from circa 685 A.D.! 
My photos taken at the British Museum in 2014
Now jump to 2021: So out  of the blue this week I get an email from a guy at Kellycodetectors.com, which I discovered sells metal detectors.  He asked if I’d link to his article–well, I nearly NEVER do stuff like that, but what a fun rabbit hole I fell into!  If I lived somewhere with the potential for finding archeological things (one of my career wishes as an adolescent) I could do that.  

So, not only was it not spam, but it led me down a delightful path:  They have four interesting articles if you are in to amazing art and lesser known history:

The Sutton Hoo Treasure, one of the richest treasures ever found on British Soil
The Hoxne Hoard:  The Largest Unearthed Roman Treasure Ever
The Staffordshire Horde
and
The Cuerdale Hoard:  the Largest Viking Hoard of Silver (in the UK/outside of Russia)

The links to my two blogposts after the trip are here and here, with my photos at the Museum and at the Sutton Hoo site.  Some 14 years after first seeing the Sutton Hoo treasures, while living in central Africa actually, I learned that one could now visit the site!  So I resolved to visit someday.  That turned out to be 2014.  The discoveries are now a fun movie called The Dig, available on Netflix. Hope you enjoy the diversion!  

England 2014: Sutton Hoo and the British Museum (first Monday)

Wednesday, September 17th, 2014

The Sutton Hoo Burial Treasures at the British Museum, London

The Sutton Hoo Burial Treasures at the British Museum, London

In 1978 I spent a semester in school in London.  It was pass-fail, not grades, so I passed.  But my time and interests were elsewhere:  I went to museums and the theatre (inexpensive same-day tickets) every week.  Every weekend, well almost every one, I went somewhere in the country by train, staying at youth hostels.   It was a most amazing few months, and some of the images have stayed with me since I was 19.  Some of those images are from the British Museum‘s exhibit of the phenomenal Sutton Hoo Burial Ship treasures which date to about 724 AD.  A decade or so ago, I learned that one could now VISIT the site where the ship was dug up, and that began my quest to return to England.  Before Eli and I went to East Anglia, however, I wanted him to see what had stayed with me all these decades.  The buckles above are just two of the samples–the intricacy of these small works is simply phenomenal, the imagery enticing.

We reached the museum mid afternoon, having been up well over 30 hours (overnight flight in a too-warm airplane included), so Eli kinda hit the wall and didn’t look much.  And it was crowded.  Beyond belief crowded.  The line into the ladies room took over half an hour–Eli actually sent a text wondering what had become of me!  I wanted Eli to see the Rosetta Stone and the Elgin Marbles since he is studying Latin.

This is the horde of humanity around the case with the Rosetta Stone.  UGH.  Too many people!

This is the horde of humanity around the case with the Rosetta Stone. UGH. Too many people!

Eventually, we got close:

THE Rosetta Stone

THE Rosetta Stone

Yep, the one, the original, the stone that helped humanity learn to read Egyptian heiroglyphics.  But what crowds.  We ended up being too tired to find the Elgin Marbles that day.  By the time we returned to London, we decided that we couldn’t cope with the hairy hordes and did not return to the Museum.  I hope some day to return, but I think it will be during a snowstorm in January just to avoid the masses!

But I did get to take many photos up in the Sutton Hoo exhibit, where the display cases and signage are vastly improved over 1978.

Just LOOK at this amazing ring pin; this one is probably almost 4 inches in diameter, and that pin could be lethal!

Just LOOK at this amazing ring pin; this one is probably almost 4 inches in diameter, and that pin could be lethal!

The case with a selection of items, the above pin is on the left.

The case with a selection of items, the above pin is on the left.

The most stunning item from the Sutton Hoo find is this mask.  They believe the ship was for the king of the Anglo-Saxons in East Anglia and dates to circa 724 a.d.  These are the remnants of the helmet.

The most stunning item from the Sutton Hoo find is this mask. They believe the ship was for the king of the Anglo-Saxons in East Anglia and dates to circa 724 a.d. These are the remnants of the helmet.

Based on the fragments and knowledge about contemporary helmets and design, they have made this piece to show what it would have looked like at the time of burial, including the garnets on the eyebrow ridges.  Simply phenomenal artistry and craftsmanship.

Based on the fragments and knowledge about contemporary helmets and design, they have made this piece to show what it would have looked like at the time of burial, including the garnets on the eyebrow ridges. Simply phenomenal artistry and craftsmanship.

More every-day implements and artifacts.

More every-day implements and artifacts.

And I am always intrigued by how people lived in olden times.  This pot would have been hung from a ridgeline/rafter post over a fire.

And I am always intrigued by how people lived in olden times. This pot would have been hung from a ridgeline/rafter post over a fire.

The original gourd had long since rotted away, but the intricate metalwork survived, so they made this wooden vessel to go with the metalwork and show how it was originally made.

The original gourd had long since rotted away, but the intricate metalwork survived, so they made this wooden vessel to go with the metalwork and show how it was originally made.  Just think of the designs–in calligraphy, quilting, you name it!

Another buckle component.  Look at the faces in those round areas!

Another buckle component. Look at the faces in those round areas!  If I recall, this is probably three inches or so tall?   The level of detail and workmanship simple awes me.

Then back to the hotel to collapse!  Time for a good night's sleep before a long and happy Tuesday. I took this picture of Notting Hill station (remember the movie with Hugh Grant?  Yep, that Notting Hill, which is a district in London not far from our Tube stop).

Then back to the hotel to collapse! Time for a good night’s sleep before a long and happy Tuesday. I took this picture of Notting Hill station (remember the movie with Hugh Grant? Yep, that Notting Hill, which is a district in London not far from our Tube stop).  It is one of the stations that hasn’t been gussied up and still has its old character.

So those are the artifacts that sent me back to England–I wanted to see them again, not just in photos, and go to where they had been found.  That would happen on Thursday, but we had two phenomenal days before that one!  There’s more to come!

A foray into Metalworking

Wednesday, October 10th, 2012

Copper tendrils hold the watch face onto my sketchbook cover.

Oh what FUN!  For a number of years now I have been inspired by New Zealander Claire Prebble’s wirework in her art-to-wear costumes (her website is here), and have wanted to mess around with wire.  Then last summer I took the first of three online classes with Jane LaFazio.  In one of them, I “met” Janice Berkebile and several other wonderful women.  After the second of the classes with Jane, we decided to set up our own sketching group online (we are globally dispersed from the San Francisco Bay area to northern California to near Seattle, Ontario Canada, Vermont and Maine and in the UK).  One day, Janice quietly said “Oh… my first book is just published.”  SAY WHAT?!!!!!!!   Here it is, and it is wonderful:

If you’d like to see Janice, click here and for the home page to their website, click here.

Well, I’m nowhere near starting on anything as awesomely intricate as Claire Prebble’s work, or even one of the simpler projects in the book, but I sure had a grand start today.  See several years ago, my Frayed Edges art quilt mini-group friends and I decided to do a journal-cover swap.   I got the lovely one made by Kate Cutko (queen of recycled and all things “green”…her blog is here) which has discharged and also rust-dyed fabric.  When she gave it to me, she told me she had wanted to find a watch face to sew to the cover.  Well, that year at Quilt Festival/Houston I found just the one!

After several years of use, the monofilament thread which I had used to attach the watch face had  broken, so I wanted to re-apply the watch face to the journal more securely.  At first I was going to sew beads to set it the way you would use seed beads to couch a cabochon (big flat stone/bead) to something.  Ugh. Hard.  Then I had a brainstorm–WIRE!   So this morning I started to play.

My work table this morning with hammers, pliers, cutters, wire (copper), more wire, and Janice’s book open to the appropriate page.

At first I was thinking of making a network of wire underneath with curlicues that extended to the front and intertwined with a circle of copper (since I bought that because it isn’t as expensive as silver!) on the top.  Then I thought…why a second circle on top?  How about “prongs” that wrap to the front and have them hold it?   SO….I made it!

Janice and Tracy’s book is great because it tells you what tools you need, which are nice-but-optional (especially when starting the cost of tools can be a bit frightening!).  I bought a larger bench block than you recommended (only slightly) in the book because I want  to eventually work on some larger pieces that may well include shapes cut from sheet metal…. They give all sorts of hints and tips, and have TONS of step-by-step pictures so you can follow along on your own.

Journal, with watch face attached with way more fun and creativity this time!

The tendrils that wrap to the front grip the watch face securely.  I sewed the copper “whatchamacallit” to the cover, then tucked the watch face into it, and pinched the tendrils down.

And then for fun I tried to make a spiral…while standing up and rushing.  Not the best, but at least it is a start!

Not quite round, but at least it is a tight spiral with a hanging loop!

So now I have their book back by my spot on the sofa and tonight will pore over it to see what I can adapt to use some beautiful beads made by ANOTHER internet friend that I got to meet in the real 4 years ago in Paducah (Caty are you out there?)!