Galloway Hoard crystal jar on display – The

A unique crystal jar decorated with gold filigree, one of the treasures found in the Galloway Hoard, is on display for the first time at Kirkcudbright Gallery, less than 10 miles from where the treasure was discovered in 2014.

Buried around AD 900, the Galloway Treasures contain an unprecedented collection of valuable artifacts and materials from Ireland, Anglo-Saxon England, Persia and as far away as Central Asia. This filigree crystal jar was of Anglo-Saxon manufacture and is one of the greatest examples of Anglo-Saxon metalwork for the quality of its materials and craftsmanship. The Latin inscription on the base reads HYGVALDEP : FAC : IUSS (“Bishop Hayward made me do it”), indicating that it came from the treasury of Northumbria Cathedral, although no bishop named Hayward is found in the fragmentary 9th-century church records.

However, the crystal itself predates the gold setting. It is carved with lobes that, when viewed upside down, look like acanthus leaving layers of Corinthian columns. The wear on the hard material and the great skill required to carve it indicate that it was made in the Roman Empire. It is the capital of miniature columns – some of which are in the collection of the Vatican Museums – and has a central drilled hole originally used to hold the column parts together.

The carved crystal top appears to have been long separated from the rest of the column and has been considered a family heirloom for centuries. Hundreds of years later, it was turned over and the unique filigree technique was used, using spirals of twisted and braided wire and granulation to decorate the gold. The drilled hole is covered with a golden nozzle. It may have been used to hold a small amount of liquid, a valuable substance, or perhaps a relic.

While it was placed with other items from the Galloway hoard in a fine silver jar, the crystal jar was wrapped in linen and then placed in a leather pouch lined with a layer of rich brocade (a decorative silk of Asian or Byzantine origin).

Dr Martin Goldberg from National Museums Scotland said:

“The Crystal Jar is one of the highlight objects in the Galloway Hoard. From the beautiful crystal itself, originally carved in the form of a classical Corinthian column over two thousand years ago, to the extremely intricate gold decoration added hundreds of years later, including a clear inscription identifying its owner, this object embodies the complexity, interconnectedness and history of the Galloway Hoard. When we first revealed the inscription, the jar was the subject of international attention and it is a pleasure to have it on display for the first time in Kirkcudbright.”