Hairpin

Art Historical Context

Step into the world of 7th-century Frankish with this delicate bronze hairpin, a small yet exquisite example of everyday metalwork from the Metropolitan Museum of's Medieval Art collection. Measuring just 5 3/8 inches long, slender artifact—gifted by J. Pierpont Morgan in1917—likely served as a practical hair accessory for women, securing elaborate hairstyles that were a mark of status and cultural identity among the Franks, the Germanic tribes who dominated much of early medieval Europe under the Merovingian dynastyCrafted from bronze, a durable and accessible metal, the hairpin exemplifies t...