The Minister's ruling follows a recommendation by the Reviewing Committee on the Export of Works of Art and Objects of Cultural Interest, run by the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council. The Committee recommended that the export decision be deferred on the grounds that the figure is of outstanding significance for medieval studies.
The figure, which measures 49.5mm in height, 37mm in length and 16mm in width, was found by metal detection in Lindrick, Nottinghamshire. It is cast in bronze in one piece and represents a mounted knight holding, in his right hand, the reins of his horse, and, in his left, a kite-shaped shield without any obvious heraldic decoration. The exact function of the figure is at present unknown. It is believed likely it was made as decoration for a larger object, such as a candlestick, chalice cover or censor cover, but other suggestions have included a chess piece or toy. As a record of a knight equipped for battle, the figure provides a valuable insight into twelfth century practices. The relatively low value of the metal suggests that this figure was intended for an object of lower status which also gives the piece a potentially useful role as a social indicator.
The decision on the export licence application for medieval figure will be deferred for a period ending on 5 April inclusive. This period may be extended until 5 July inclusive if a serious intention to raise funds with a view to making an offer to purchase the figure at the recommended price of £34,000 (excluding VAT) is expressed.
Anyone interested in making an offer to purchase the medieval figure should contact the owner's agent through:
The Secretary
The Reviewing Committee on the Export of Works of Art
Museums, Libraries and Archives Council,
83 Victoria Street,
London.
SW1H 0HW
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Notes to Editors
1. From April 2005, responsibility for administering the work of the Reviewing Committee on the Export of Works of Art and Objects of Cultural Interest was passed by DCMS to the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council (MLA). Media enquiries on the operation and casework arising from RCEWA and from the Acceptance in Lieu and Government Indemnity Schemes and the export licence system should go to Viola Lewis on 020 7273 1458, email viola.lewis@mla.gov.uk
2. The Reviewing Committee on the Export of Works of Art and Objects of Cultural Interest is an independent body, run by MLA, which advises the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport on whether a cultural object, intended for export, is of national importance under specified criteria. Where the Committee finds that an object meets one or more of the criteria, it will normally recommend that the decision on the export licence application should be deferred for a specified period. An offer may then be made from within the United Kingdom at or above the fair market price.
3. The knight wears a conical helmet with a wide rim but without ear-flaps or a nose-guard and a long, flowing surcoat. The lack of detail and surface abrasion makes it impossible to see whether he wears chain-mail. His hair is cropped and hangs in thick strands and he is bearded. He has prominent eyes and a down-turned mouth. The horse is not rendered in the same degree of detail. It is furnished with a saddle cloth and a bridle. Its shaggy mane almost obscures its eyes and its abundant tail reaches to the ground. The horse's anatomy seems to be obscured by its caparison from which its four hooves obtrude.
4. Microscopic analysis of the figure revealed thin, white metal plating over much of the surface of the figure which has proved to be tinning. The base of the horse also has a coating of white metal, quite thick in parts, which has been found to be solder.
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5. Images of equestrian knights proliferate in the visual arts throughout the twelfth century, which is the likely date of the figure. Depictions of comparable knights occur in the historiated initials of illuminated manuscripts, notably the Siege of Jerusalem from the Bibliothèque National, Paris (lat.16730.f.262v) dated to around 1170-80; on seals, such as the second seal of Henry II at Durham Cathedral (3.I.Reg.Ia) in use from 1154-89; on textiles such as the fragment of embroidery at St John's Seminary, Wonersh which is dated to around 1180 – 1210 and in stone carvings, shown by the relief of St Michael and the dragon at St Bees Priory Church Cumbria dated to around 1120. Representations of knights in the round, however, are very rare; the closest comparison is offered by a number of the knights among the Lewis chessmen at the British Museum and the National Museum of Scotland which date from around 1150 -1200.
6. The strong similarity between the bronze knight and the walrus ivory knights from the Lewis chessmen has led to the suggestion that the knight is a miniature chess-piece. A number of points would seem to militate against this identification. The scale of the knight does not conform to surviving chess- pieces of the same period which are few and seem never to be cast in base metal. More importantly the solder on the base strongly suggests that it was a component of a larger object.
7. Miniature bronze figures were used in the twelfth century to decorate elaborate candlesticks such as the Gloucester candlestick at the Victoria and Albert Museum (m.7649.1861) and censer covers, for example at the British Museum (1919,11-11,1). The figures which inhabit these works tend to be cast as part of the whole by wax-casting and are not applied separately by solder. Certain other objects have figurative finials which are either fixed with pins or soldered on. A cast silver figure group of Achilles riding the centaur Chiron serves as a finial on the cover of a ciborium preserved in the Treasury at the abbey of St Maurice d'Agaune in Switzerland which dates to around 1200-1210. It is possible that the equestrian knight served a similar purpose.
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8. The scale of the figure is equally suggestive of a toy. The ephemeral nature of toys means that few survive from the twelfth century and comparisons are not forthcoming. However, the fact that the knight is cast in a solid, though small, chunk of bronze makes it unlikely that it was intended as a toy since it is an uneconomic use of the metal. Toys are usually hollow for this reason. The fact that the knight has been tinned may be a further indication that it was not intended to be a toy since the tinning would have heightened its visual impact and was probably applied for enhanced decorative effect.
9. Pictures of these items can be downloaded free of charge from the MLA site on Pixmedia. Please go to the MLA page situated within the Arts section of Picselect at http://www.pixmedia.co.uk/25/image/2963
