“In stature she was very tall, in appearance most terrifying, the glance of her eye most fierce, and her voice was harsh; a great mass of the tawniest hair fell to her hips; around her neck was a large golden necklace; and she wore a tunic of diverse colours over which a thick mantle was fastened with a brooch.”
This description of the mighty warrior Queen Boadicea by Cassius Dio conjures an impressive image. An image that has inspired artists and ignited heroic imaginations for nearly two thousand years.
Although much is left to our imagination when trying to picture images from our ancient past like that Boadicea’s, because of archaeological finds some things are easier than others. Take for example the golden necklace that Cassius describes adorning Boadicea’s neck, this must be a description of a Celtic Torc. And luckily for us 175 torcs, were found in a field that 2 thousand years ago was within the territory of the proud Iceni.
The most spectacular find was what is known as the “Snettisham Great Torc”. Although the dating puts it about a hundred years to early to be the one Boadicea wore, it gives us a great example of the one she did.
The Snettisham great Torc consists of 64 intricately woven golden threads. 8 small threads were entwined to make 8 larger ones that are again weaved to make the final piece. The terminals were cast using the lost wax method either directly on the piece or separately and welded on later to complete this masterpiece of Iron age metalworking.
Weighing over 2kg, this majestic work of art would of belonged to someone of great renown and fame. Given that there is only about one hundred years between the burial of the piece and Boadicea’s uprising, the powerful figure that once owned it would almost certainly of been known to her from legend, and even possibly one of her ancestors.
The Great Torcs timeless beauty, is for me perfectly mirrored by the timeless nature of Boadicea’s struggle. Both speak through the ages to the true nature of ourselves and the world we dwell in.
Boadicea’s defiance shows the immortal nature of our desire for freedom, whilst the Torc perfectly encapsulates our inner beauty, made manifest. And once again we see our forebears not as primitive barbarians eeking out an existence on the edge of the world, but as enlightened philosophers of the internal and external beauty of man.