Merovingian-Frankish 6th Century

Whorl-Shaped Brooch

A Reproduction Done During These Crazy Plague Times

 

Lady Cailleach Dhe ingen Chiarain

MKA Karyn L Driscoll

220249@members.eastkingdom.org

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Found at a grave in Bréban, Marne, France                        Reproduction by Lady Cailleach, Oct. 2020

 

Extent Brooch: About

 

            This particular brooch is held by the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art, and was found in a cemetery at the grave of a woman who is believed to have been of high-status, as Sartorial laws only permitted women of high ranking to wear such things.  There were a pair of them found, thought to be functional dress or clothing fasteners along with a single brooch for decorative purposes (MerovingianDynasty). It is one-inch in width, and one-quarter inch in depth.

While I am prone to acts of service in our Kingdom, rather than showcasing my art, I found that I wanted to dive right into this project, but it wasn’t until October 2020 that I was able to actualize all of this creativity.  I began looking into the history of the time period, the clothing and the culture of this brooch.  I was fascinated at how so very long ago, the people were able to conceptualize and create jewelry with such advanced techniques as enameling, cloisonné techniques, gilding, glass paste, foil backed stones, filigree and such detail!

 

My Process:

 

            I decided to sculpt a slightly larger piece than the 1-inch wide extent brooch.  The reproduction was made at 1 3/8-inch, because I firmly believe decorative pieces are meant to be seen!

I began by using soft Sculpey clay, rolled it to a uniform thickness then took a circular stencil and traced the outer edge with an Exacto blade.  I used the blade to create the rest of the shape free-hand, using a photo of the extent brooch as my guide.  I used a round-end tool to create the depth for the “glass” to sit in, and then baked my clay to harden it.  I used metal files to shape and round the edges of the clay, and took a sharp edge to lightly carve the double circles into the face of the shape.  When my hands gave up, due to limited fine motor skills, I used a Dremel tool with fine bits to deepen the grooves and smooth out any ridges or sharp edges.        Once happy with my design, I mixed the two parts of MoldMax 60 silicone together and poured them over my clay to make a mold.  After allowing the silicone to cure, I used an electric casting furnace to melt pewter and used a dipper tool to gently pour the metal into the mold.  Once cooled, I was able to easily pop the finished brooch out and add a pin or necklace bail to the back using a quick-drying water-proof glue.  My “glass” is an oil-based pearlescent paint applied with a paint brush and allowed to dry.

While I recognize that how I created these brooches is not period, it was a great learning experience, as well as a cost-effective way to “mass produce” a dozen pieces as a donation to Kingdom largess. 

 

What I used:

 

• R98 pewter alloy

• Exacto blade, metal files, Dremel tool

• Pin back or necklace bail

• Electrical casting furnace

• MoldMax 60 Silicone

• Water-proof all-purpose glue

• Sculpey firm oven-bake clay

• Pebeo oil-based paint

• Waxed cotton cord

 

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