Posted 7 years ago
SpiritBear
(813 items)
As an open Christian I thought I should get to displaying the fact. I began looking at cross necklaces online, then decided to type in Ancient and see what would pop up. Among many ancient themed necklaces, numerous dug ones began popping up.
This was one of them. I was only able to get a date-range (and that it came from the Baltic regions) from the importer, who got it from a seller likely in Ukraine (he didn't specify).
With some research, I further narrowed down the date-range (based on documented archaeological digs of very similar pieces) to c. 1,000 A.D. to 1,100 A.D. in an area around Latvia/Estonia/Russia, likely created by Baltic Finns present from the 900s onward.
Most sellers call these 'Viking crosses'. As for where they got that, I haven't found yet. More like early Orthodox Christians of the Baltics.
I have since turned it into a necklace, it's original intent-- denied it about 1,000 years.
Be careful when buying ancient items from Eastern Europe. Fakes are being produced in huge quantities, Roman, early Christian, Medieval. Artificial green patina created with chemicals. Only real experts and experienced museum curators can tell the difference.
Thank you for your concern. I looked at the reviews for the seller, who is based in St. Augustine. I also looked at his sold listings, then noted that he has sold numerous items from various times and countries. I then messaged with him back and forth, posing questions for which he revealed he imports them, and did some research on more reputable sites than those that sell.
As a matter of interest, I shared this with the Facebook page: Baltica, which is relative to all things Baltic.
This may have been made by Roman Catholic Christians, as I don't think that the split that produced The Orthodox Church had occurred during the time frame that you mentioned.
And, I agree that that it may not have originated in Lithuania because Lithuania was still a pagan nation at the the time, and was the last European nation to adopt Christianity. I can't remember the exact date, but I think that the conversion occurred in the 1300s.
As a Swede, it looks Viking to me.
Ted, thank you for putting it up and conveying what they said.
PostCardCollector, it's how similar pieces are usually sold. They often have the nail-head-like arms of equal length and an X (on the back of mine is an X, albeit corroded).