Princely Fibula from the Răzeni Village

The fibula is a stray find discovered by locals near the Răzeni village in the Ialoveni district of the Republic of Moldova and in 2022 was transferred to the National Museum of the History of Moldova. This is a two-plate fibula with a rhombic foot and a semicircular head. Its body was made of white metal (silver?) enclosed in a gold overlay. The shields and the arched bow were decorated with carnelian and overlaid metal elements (grain, double spirals, ribbed and openwork). This type of brooches is part of the "ethnographic" female costume of the Chernyakhov culture of the late Roman period. At the beginning of the Great Migration Period, this dress served as the basis for the formation of the "princely" costume of the East German tradition with large two-plate brooches, which became widespread in the 5 th century AD from the Atlantic to the North Caucasus. The fibula has a prestigious character and belongs to the "princely" culture of the initial phase of the Migration Period. According to the general morphology, it belongs rather to the D1 period i. e., 360/370-400/410, and according to the design analogues on large brooches, it belongs to the D2 period or 380/400-440/450. In Eastern Europe, both of these periods are usually combined in the framework of the so-called Hunnic time. Two versions of the identification of this fibula are possible. Perhaps this is a children's copy of a large fibula. Another scenario is that the size of the fibula reflects the status level of their owners. It is possible that this item was intended for ladies who occupy a high position in society, but who, according to the hierarchy, were "below" the bearers of large polychrome brooches

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