6th century Frankish-Merovingian Brooch Set – Art as Service – Cailleach Dhe ingen Chiarain

East Kingdom Wiki: https://wiki.eastkingdom.org/index.php?title=Cailleach_Dh%C3%A9_ingen_Chiar%C3%A1in

​​Inspired by the casting work of another SCAdian, I fell in love with a 6th Century Merovingian whorl brooch that I found on Pinterest. This has led me down a path of learning sculpting, pewter casting, and A&S research for the SCA during these crazy times.  This display is a culmination of two separate projects:  6th C. Merovingian Quatrefoil Whorl Brooch, and 6th C. Merovingian Wheel Brooch.  

As noted in each project’s own original blog post on my website, I fell down a research rabbit hole and wanted to learn as much as possible both about the casting process, and the Merovingian era.  As part of this Merovingian exploration, I am creating an ensemble of proposed clothing that a Lady would have worn in that time and place, which will include a Wheel brooch found near Paris (Met), and a quatrefoil Whorl brooch per a grave find in Bréban, Marne, France (MerovingianDynasty). 

I will be attempting to create the bow brooches from the Bréban grave as a future project.  Unfortunately, there is not much in the way of extent clothing from this era, so much will be conjecture based on a woman buried at the Barbares Grave 12, or that of Arnegunde, a Merovingian Queen.  This ambitious culmination of information will be displayed in full once completed.

While I recognize that how I created these brooches is not period, it continues to be a great learning experience, a way to delve into history, and a way that I can further my Art as Service to our Kingdom. 

Full A&S documentation can be found here:

https://kldriscoll.wixsite.com/cailleachdhe/a-sdisplay2021

15 thoughts on “6th century Frankish-Merovingian Brooch Set – Art as Service – Cailleach Dhe ingen Chiarain

  1. I love your thinking on this project and am looking forward to seeing what you produce next.

  2. I love seeing ‘commonplace’ items of our particular customs that incorporate historical style and touches. I’m sure those who receive your medallions will cherish them.

  3. These are beautiful. Thank you for the write up on your process. It inspires me to look into pewter casting.

  4. These are quite lovely. Thank you for sharing your artistry and your process.

  5. These are beautiful! I loved reading your documentation, too — thank you for the history and sharing your process. Very cool! Someday when we can go places again, I want to go back to the Met Museum & see the originals…

  6. As someone who got to handle these in person, I thought they were just great. I applaud your efforts in learning these skills and thank you for presenting here so that others can witness the work you put into these.

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