Lunula

from the Antique Jewelry University

A lunula is an ornament that was in fashion over the entire Bronze Age and into the Iron Age. It is named after the Latin word for moon luna (lunula literally means: little moon) because of its crescent shape. Usually it is made from a thin sheet of bronze or gold and occasionally silver. The crescent often terminates in square or rounded plates that are twisted to right angles to the rest of the item. When these terminals are brought together and fastened the crescent will form a conically shaped round tube that would rest on the base of the neck. Harold Newman, in his An illustrated dictionary of jewelry points out that the use of lunulae is uncertain and that waring the item around the neck can be dangerous for the wearer. He offers another possible use: that of headwear.

Lunulae are often chased with decorative motifs common on Bronze Age pottery: zig zag lines, triangles and diamond (kite) shapes. Later embossed motifs started to appear.

Most lunulae have been found in Ireland but examples have been unearthed from Germany to Portugal as well.

Early Bronze Age lunula
Iron Age Lunula

Sources consulted

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