Art: The Iron Age and Lá Téne Culture

Central Europe

Just before and after the first century BC

North and north-western part of the country

Originated from an area known as La Tene, near the river Neuchatel, along with the Celts that brought it over

It was part of Celtic culture to throw objects into lakes as a ceremonial offering. La Tene is a prime example of a European Celtic site

Great deposit of weapons and other objects were found in the Lake

The Mediterranean and Eastern Europe, including Greece.

Varied, very repetitive, very decorative, motifs borrowed from Eastern and Greek ideas, emphasis on plant forms e.g honeysuckle, flowing tendrils, together blend into a distinctive style of abstract and curvilinear patterns

In Central Europe around 300 BC

The First century AD

They added to the metalwork of the time, soldering and enamelling

Bronze

Armagh

Long, large curved stem, elongated conical form

Repousse technique

Curvilinear pattern

Rolling a tube of bronze and riveting the sides to a strip on the insides

A rimmed circular disc

Executed in repousse, is controlled and regular. Linear curves and spiral bosses are all in high relief, with larger spirals ending in curvilinear forms

George Petrie, a famous collector of nineteenth century antiques, who had it in his possession

Bronze

Crown

Circular discs are mounted on a band of metal, with conical horns rising from behind discs. The band has a row of small holes suggesting fabric may have been stitched to it.

Curvilinear low relief design. Cut away designs are composed of spiral designs and trumpet curves ending in stylised bird heads

Cutting away the metal rather than casting or hammering

Concave

Trumpet curves sweeping out from the centre where there is a setting for a bird

Curves follow a different pattern and the central boss contains a stud of red enamel

Folding a sheet of bronze into a conical shape and riveting the edges to an under sheet of copper

The design was cut away after the horn was in position

Curves sweep up and out from the base of the horn, ending in beautiful bird heads

Broighter, co. Derry

Gold

Torc

Two thin sheets of gold rolled into hollow tubes. The decorated sheets of gold were rolled into tubes and soldered together. The tubes were filled with hot wax to heat the metal before bending into hoops (two half-hoops with a decorative fastener)

Repousse

Trumpet patterns and flowing tendrils were executed while still flat. The design, made in repousse, was worked down the centre of two flat pieces of gold, leaving broad, plain margins.

Foliage and leaf motifs

Front end of each hoop

in the form o a cylindrical drum

Bands of gold

By a linking tube or a decoration hinge

Galway

Carved pillar stone. Cylindrical block of granite

Made of native stone

The metalwork of the time

With a well- executed design of spirals, trumpets, circles and one single triskele

A whirl of tendril and trumpet ornament covers the stone completely, but it is carefully planned to have four sides

Is a more geometric pattern similar to a Greek step pattern

The decoration in low relief suggests that the artist was imitating, not repousse, but work in which the design was made by cutting away the background

Dun Aengus

Aran island of Inishmore

280 feet

Three rings of stone walls with an abbatis and thousands of upright standing stone pillars to keep invaders out surrounding them