Iron Age Western Europe
from c. 800 B.C.

La Tène

[La Tene limestone head] 1. Limestone head from Msecke Zebrovice, Bohemia (Prague: National Museum).
[Turoe stone, carved in La Tene style] 2. Turoe stone, carved in La Tene style, from Galway, Eire. The style derives from Halstatt, with Scythian and Mediterranean influences.
[Gunderstrup Cauldron] 3. Silver Gunderstrup Cauldron (Copenhagen: National Museum). Decorated with Celtic divinities.
[Celtic coin, Romania] 4. Silver coin with stylized head on recto, and on the verso a horse and rider. From Romania. Second century B.C.
[Celtic Bronze helmet from the chariot burial at La Gorge Meillet] 5. Bronze helmet from the chariot burial at La Gorge Meillet (St-Germain-en-Laye: Musé des Antiquités Nationales). 37 cm. tall.
[La Tene bronze helmet in Waldalgesheim style] 6. Bronze helmet in Waldalgesheim style of 4th century, with gold and iron mountings from Amfreville, Eure, France (Paris: Louvre). 17.5 cm. high. Knobbed finial and cheekguards are missing.
[Arm rings and a torc from the chariot grave at Waldalgesheim] 7. Arm rings and a torc from the chariot grave at Waldalgesheim, Keuznach, Germany (Bonn: Rheinisches Landesmuseum). This late 4th c. B.C. torc is a type piece for Early La Tene art. 18 cm. dia.
[La Tene gold torcs from a hoard at Erstfeld] 8. Gold torcs from a hoard at Erstfeld, north of the St. Gotthard Pass, Switzerland (Zurich: Schweizerisches Landesmueum). Ca. 400 B.C. 14.5 cm dia. The imaginative design hides the gap in the torc.
[Gold torc, bracelets, and rings from a woman't grave at Reinheim] 9. Gold torc (neck bracelet), bracelets, and rings from a woman't grave at Reinheim, Germany (Saarbrücken: Saarland Museum). Early 4th c. B.C. Torc dia. 17 cm. Such prestige goods suggest that elite females enjoyed high status in Early La Tene society (mid 5th-4th c. B.C.), perhaps due to steppe influence, but in time their position declined.
[La Tene silver torc from Trichtingen] 10. Silver torc from Trichtingen, South Germany (Stuttgart: Würtembergisches Landesmuseum). 25 c. dia. Torcs were gold or bronze (rarely silver) neck bracelets that literally were twisted rods or tubes, but usually were not. It seems to have been adopted by the Celts from Persian models by the fifth century B.C. It is possible the torc signified its wearer's religious leadership responsibilities.
[Bronze fibula in the form of a man from Manetin Hradek] 11. Bronze fibula in the form of a man from Manetin Hradek, Bohemia (Pilsen: Zapadoceske Museum). 9 cm. long. Probably originally inlaid with coral, although in time coral was replaced by enamel inlays. Southern influences may also be seen in Etruscan style dress. Fibula are large decorative safety pins to hold a cloak, and go back in Europe to Urnfeld times. They tend to be stylistically expressive and can be important prestige grave goods.
[Early Celtic bronze flagon] 12. Early Celtic bronze flagon with human masks and animal figures (Salzburg: Museum Carolini Augusteum). Late 5th-early 4th c. B.C. grave good from Grave XVI of the Duürnberg cemetery, Salzburg. 46.5 cm. tall.
[La Tene painted pottery from Prunay] 13. Painted pottery recalling the Waldalgesheim style, late 4th or early 3rd c. B.C., from a grave at Prunay, Cher, France (London: British Museum). 31 cm. tall.

Romano-Celtic

[Bronze mirror back from Desborough] 1. Bronze mirror back from Desborough, Northants (London: British Museum). In the Early Celtic art of Britain toward the end of the first millenium there is a development of the spiral and trumpet decorative theme. 36 cm dia.
[Romano-Celtic chalk-cut figure of a club-bearing giant] 2. Romano-Celtic chalk-cut figure of a club-bearing giant, from Cerne, Abbas, Dorset.. 55 m. tall. Probably the god Dagda, who was a grotesque giant of immense strength and appetites, who bears a hugh club and represents rejuvenation, inexhaustibility, and inspiration.
[Gallo-roman bronze bust, from Finthen] 3. Gallo-roman bronze bust, from Finthen, near Mainz (Mainz: Mittelrheinisches Landesmuseum). 31 cm. high. Celtic women were noteworthy for their height and their bravery.
[Gallo Roman stone figure from Euffigneix, Haute Marne] 4. Gallo-Roman stone figure from Euffigneix, Haute Marne, France (St-Germain-en-Laye: Musée des Antiquités Nationales). First century B.C. 26 cm. tall. Design anticipates later Irish manuscript illumination.
[ Romano-Celtic champlevé cups] 5. Romano-Celtic champlevé cups. The technology of enameling is Roman. In the West, the enamel is placed on the surface of the bronze, and hence the term "champlevé." The cup is from from second half of the 2nd century, and the two-piece vase is from the 3rd century. 4.75" tall (New York, Metropolitan Museum)