tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post4959326809383517802..comments2024-03-23T12:38:46.260+00:00Comments on The History Girls: The Alfred Jewel comes home: Sue PurkissMary Hoffmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06241989732624913706noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-54610448776023621752015-02-20T23:10:39.935+00:002015-02-20T23:10:39.935+00:00Ladies, magnifying lenses had been known of and ha...Ladies, magnifying lenses had been known of and had been created as far back as Roman times. IIRC, one Graeco-Roman Scholar even produced an early treatise on the making of lenses. Suggesting short-sighted goldsmiths is perhaps an assumption too far.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16876876471458925523noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-43316929643897472122015-02-17T22:36:46.877+00:002015-02-17T22:36:46.877+00:00Lovely to think such a special object is being pro...Lovely to think such a special object is being properly shown off. I'll look out for 'Alfred' next time I'm in the Ashmolean. Lydia Sysonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04613876235125755967noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-86133085703293277032015-02-16T11:52:42.424+00:002015-02-16T11:52:42.424+00:00Yes, Sue - that does make sense. I'm short-sig...Yes, Sue - that does make sense. I'm short-sighted too, and can only thread a needle without contact lenses or glasses.Sue Purkisshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09084528571944803477noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-57733801361036688772015-02-16T11:32:23.565+00:002015-02-16T11:32:23.565+00:00I saw it in the Ashmolean, and it truly it gorgeou...I saw it in the Ashmolean, and it truly it gorgeous - and, as Sue says, full of the most amazing, tiny detail, like the Sutton Hoo treasures.<br />I saw a suggestion somewhere that Anglo-Saxon goldsmiths may often have been short-sighted, because short-sight (as I can verify) magnifies.<br />I like this idea because it means that people who would have been useless for, say, hunting, because unable to see an elk unless it was standing on their foot, would have found a niche as expert craftmen.Susan Pricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07738737493756183909noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-23730746470339515492015-02-16T11:26:48.890+00:002015-02-16T11:26:48.890+00:00The language is Anglo-Saxon, Carol. As for the rea...The language is Anglo-Saxon, Carol. As for the reason why it's come back for this particular month - that's an interesting question to which I don't know the answer...Sue Purkisshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09084528571944803477noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-26846835771040403112015-02-16T11:01:28.740+00:002015-02-16T11:01:28.740+00:00Is there a reason why 'he' is home for thi...Is there a reason why 'he' is home for this particular month, Sue? What is the language the inscription is written in? Lovely post. Carol Drinkwaterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05837854482139736944noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-37485645352591897492015-02-16T09:24:23.925+00:002015-02-16T09:24:23.925+00:00(Actually, I always think of him as "Sue'...(Actually, I always think of him as "Sue's Alfred" too.)Joan Lennonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15763862159032836768noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-3073825086927892782015-02-16T09:23:29.132+00:002015-02-16T09:23:29.132+00:00I'd seen the Alfred Jewel on TV documentaries ...I'd seen the Alfred Jewel on TV documentaries but to see it in the flesh must be amazing! Thanks for posting about it!Joan Lennonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15763862159032836768noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-20499779954781535892015-02-16T08:14:08.107+00:002015-02-16T08:14:08.107+00:00Happy to give you a tour of this particular nook, ...Happy to give you a tour of this particular nook, Sue!Sue Purkisshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09084528571944803477noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5502671101756463249.post-73194639560111968072015-02-16T04:11:33.289+00:002015-02-16T04:11:33.289+00:00Right. I have to make note of some of these places...Right. I have to make note of some of these places to see on my next trip to England. :-)Sue Bursztynskihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09362273418897882971noreply@blogger.com