Alfred Jewel

51°22′29″N 2°26′27″W / 51.374687°N 2.440724°W / 51.374687; -2.440724

The Jewel viewed from the front, with the top in shadow

The Alfred Jewel is a piece of Anglo-Saxon goldsmithing work made of enamel and quartz enclosed in gold. It was discovered in 1693, in North Petherton, Somerset, England and is now one of the most popular exhibits at the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford. It has been dated to the late 9th century, in the reign of Alfred the Great, and is inscribed "AELFRED MEC HEHT GEWYRCAN", meaning "Alfred ordered me made". The jewel was once attached to a rod, probably of wood, at its base. After decades of scholarly discussion, it is now "generally accepted" that the jewel's function was to be the handle for a pointer stick for following words when reading a book. It is an exceptional and unusual example of Anglo-Saxon jewellery.^[1]^[2]

^ Webster 2012, 154, quoted.
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[1] Webster 2012, 154, quoted.

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