Archaeological Museum of Bologna

Fibulae made of both iron and bronze were rather common in the Celtic tombs of Bologna.
In inhumation they were placed on the chest or shoulders to fasten garments or cloaks; in cremation tombs they were probably used to close the cloths wrapped around the fragments of carbonized bone.
The forms of the two bronze fibulae from the Arnoaldi necropolis are datable to the first half of the 4th century BC, a phase that is not extensively documented in Bologna but is of great historical importance, as it was the period immediately after the invasions of the early 4th century BC that saw the settlement of the Boii in the Bologna area.

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The bilateral spring is one of the unique features of Celtic fibulae. It was composed of an equal number of turns of a metal coil – from two to ten – on each side of the bow linked by a cord strung on the interior or exterior. The shaft, which held the tip of the needle, has a raised end turned towards the bow of the fibula, on which it rested or was hooked. The form and decoration of the bow and the end of the shaft are the main elements characterizing the shape of Celtic fibulae over time, making it possible to reconstruct their chronological development.

Provenance: Bologna, Arnoaldi necropolis, tombs 69 and 102
Datation: 375–350 BC
Material: Bronze
Dimensions: Length cm 6; cm 7,3
Inventory #: 28407; 28408