Martin M. Miles' photos with the keyword: brooch

Edinburgh has been the capital of Scotland since the 15th century. With a population of around 525,000, it is the second largest city in Scotland after Glasgow. The city is a cultural centre, and is the home of institutions including the National Museum of Scotland, the National Library of Scotland and the Scottish National Gallery. Edinburgh's Old Town and New Town together are listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The National Museum of Scotland was formed in 2006 with the merger of the new Museum of Scotland, with collections relating to Scottish antiquities, culture and history, and the adjacent Royal Scottish Museum. Both parts of the museum are located right next to each other on Chambers Street. The Royal Museum is a museum of natural sciences, technology and art. It is housed in a building dating from 1888. The Museum of Scotland deals with Scottish history and culture. It is located in a new building completed in 1998 right next to the 1888 building. Hunterston Brooch The Hunterston Brooch is a Celtic brooch that was found in the 1820s near Hunterston in North Ayrshire. The Hunterston brooch was made of silver in the first decades of the 8th century, set with pieces of amber (most of which are missing) and decorated with intertwined animal bodies made of gold filigree. The diameter of the ring is 12.2 cm. In the centre is a cross and a golden aureole depicting the risen Christ, surrounded by small bird heads. The brooch may have been made at a royal site, such as Dunadd in Argyll. The Museum of Scotland say "The style of the brooch has Irish parallels, while the filigree resembles metalwork from England. The brooch was probably made in western Scotland where the two traditions were joined, or perhaps in Ireland by a craftsman trained in foreign techniques."

Civaux, a village with a population of about 1000, has a history rooting very deep. Humans populated the area already, when stepp bisons and mammoths were hunted. Many "pre-historic" artefacts have been excavated in and around Civaux, proving that this place was inhabited over tens of thousands of years. A settlement stood on the site of the village in Gallo-Roman times, and there are still traces of Roman temples. Excavations have revealed the sites of a theater (capacity 3000), a fortified camp, and the foundations of many villas. This has been a place of very early christianisation. A funeral stele has been found dating to around 400, a pagan temple and a very early baptisterium were excavated next to the church. A polygonal apse was probably built as will around 400, what actually means that this church, dedicated to Saint Gervais and Saint Protais is one of the oldest in France. At that time a kind of pilgrimage must have developed. The relics of Saint Gervais and Saint Protais had been miraculously discovered by Saint Ambrose in Milan in 386, so the saints got very popular in Merovingian times, but that does not explain the enigma of Civaux. The village stands in the center of a huge merovingian necropolis. As many sarcophagi were sold as water basins or troughs in later time, the exact number of graves is unknown. Serious estimations are between 15.000 and 20.000 graves. Special thanks to the lady of the "Archaeological Museum Civaux", who helped me a lot. This pair of small fibulae was discovered in the tomb of a child. The brooches, depicting galloping horses, are probably from the 7th century. Crafted in Merovingian times. www.tourisme-vienne.com/en/activite/88/musee-archeologique