British Academy: The UK's National Academy for the Humanities and Social Sciences

British Academy/Royal Irish Academy Joint Symposium

Anglo-Saxon/Irish Relations before the Vikings

The Anglo-Saxon connection: Irish metalwork AD 400-800

Raghnall Ó Floinn (National Museum of Ireland, Dublin)

This paper will examine external influences on Irish metalwork of the early medieval period - Anglo-Saxon, British and Continental. Current views will be reviewed briefly and the meagre evidence for imports (both new and neglected finds) will be outlined. Finally, the evidence from archaeological excavations will be used to suggest site(s) where native and imported styles may have been combined.