Dunstable Swan Jewel
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The Dunstable Swan Jewel is a gold and enamel
brooch A brooch (, ) is a decorative jewellery item designed to be attached to garments, often to fasten them together. It is usually made of metal, often silver or gold or some other material. Brooches are frequently decorated with enamel or with gem ...
in the form of a
swan Swans are birds of the genus ''Cygnus'' within the family Anatidae. The swans' closest relatives include the goose, geese and ducks. Swans are grouped with the closely related geese in the subfamily Anserinae where they form the tribe (biology) ...
made in England or France in about 1400 and now in the
British Museum The British Museum is a Museum, public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is the largest in the world. It documents the story of human cu ...
, where it is on display in Room 40. The jewel was excavated in 1965 on the site of Dunstable Friary in
Bedfordshire Bedfordshire (; abbreviated ''Beds'') is a Ceremonial County, ceremonial county in the East of England. It is bordered by Northamptonshire to the north, Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Hertfordshire to the south and the south-east, and Buckin ...
, and is presumed to have been intended as a livery badge given by an important figure to his supporters; the most likely candidate was probably the future
Henry V of England Henry V (16 September 1386 – 31 August 1422), also called Henry of Monmouth, was King of England from 1413 until his death in 1422. Despite his relatively short reign, Henry's outstanding military successes in the Hundred Years' War against ...
, who was
Prince of Wales Prince of Wales (, ; ) is a title traditionally given to the male heir apparent to the History of the English monarchy, English, and later, the British throne. The title originated with the Welsh rulers of Kingdom of Gwynedd, Gwynedd who, from ...
from 1399. The jewel is a rare medieval example of the then recently developed and fashionable white opaque enamel used in to almost totally encase an underlying gold form. It is invariably compared to the
white hart The White Hart (" hart" being an archaic word for a mature stag) was the personal badge of Richard II, who probably derived it from the arms of his mother, Joan "The Fair Maid of Kent", heiress of Edmund of Woodstock. It may also have been a ...
badges worn by King
Richard II Richard II (6 January 1367 – ), also known as Richard of Bordeaux, was King of England from 1377 until he was deposed in 1399. He was the son of Edward, Prince of Wales (later known as the Black Prince), and Joan, Countess of Kent. R ...
and by the angels surrounding the
Virgin Mary Mary was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Saint Joseph, Joseph and the mother of Jesus. She is an important figure of Christianity, venerated under titles of Mary, mother of Jesus, various titles such as Perpetual virginity ...
in the painted ''
Wilton Diptych The Wilton Diptych (made ) is a small portable diptych of two hinged panels, painted on both sides, now in the National Gallery, London. It is an extremely rare survival of a late medieval religious panel painting from England. The diptych was p ...
'' of around the same date, where the chains hang freely down. The jewel is formed as a standing or walking
mute swan The mute swan (''Cygnus olor'') is a species of swan and a member of the waterfowl family Anatidae. It is native to much of Eurasia, and (as a rare winter visitor) the far north of Africa. It is an introduced species in North America, home to ...
gorged (collared) by a gold royal crown with six
fleur-de-lys The ''fleur-de-lis'', also spelled ''fleur-de-lys'' (plural ''fleurs-de-lis'' or ''fleurs-de-lys''), is a common heraldic charge in the (stylized) shape of a lily (in French, and mean and respectively). Most notably, the ''fleur-de-lis'' ...
tines. There is a gold chain terminating in a ring attached to the crown, and the swan has a pin and catch on its right side for fastening the brooch to clothes or a hat. The swan is high and wide, and the length of the chain is . The swan's body is in white enamel, its eyes are of black enamel, which also once covered the legs and feet, where only traces now remain. Tiny fragments of pink or red enamel remain on the beak.


Livery badges

The jewel is a unique survival of the most expensive form of livery badge, otherwise only known from inventories and representations in paintings. These were badges in various forms made for a leading figure bearing his
personal device A heraldic badge, emblem, impresa, device, or personal device worn as a badge indicates allegiance to, or the property of, an individual, family or corporate body. Medieval forms are usually called a livery badge, and also a cognizance. They are ...
, and given to others who would demonstrate by wearing them that they were in some way his employees,
retainer Retainer may refer to: * Retainer (orthodontics), devices for teeth * RFA Retainer (A329), RFA ''Retainer'' (A329), a ship * Retainers in early China, a social group in early China Employment * Retainer agreement, a contract in which an employer p ...
s, allies or supporters. They were especially common in England in the age of "
bastard feudalism ''Bastard feudalism'' is a somewhat controversial term invented by 19th-century historians to characterise the form feudalism took in the Late Middle Ages, primarily in England. Its distinctive feature is that middle-ranking figures rendered mil ...
" from the mid-fourteenth century until about the end of the fifteenth century, a period of intense factional conflict which saw the deposition of Richard II and the
Wars of the Roses The Wars of the Roses, known at the time and in following centuries as the Civil Wars, were a series of armed confrontations, machinations, battles and campaigns fought over control of the English throne from 1455 to 1487. The conflict was fo ...
. A lavish badge like the jewel would only have been worn by the person whose device was represented, members of his family or important supporters, and possibly servants who were in regular very close contact with him. However, the jewel lacks the ultimate luxury of being set with gems, for example ruby eyes, like the gems on the lion pendants worn by
Sir John Donne Sir John Donne (c.1420s – January 1503) was a Welsh courtier, diplomat and soldier, a notable figure of the Yorkist party. In the 1470s, he commissioned the ''Donne Triptych'', a triptych altarpiece by Hans Memling now in the National Ga ...
and his wife in their portraits by
Hans Memling Hans Memling (also spelled Memlinc; – 11 August 1494) was a German-Flemish people, Flemish painter who worked in the tradition of Early Netherlandish painting. Born in the Middle Rhine region, he probably spent his childhood in Mainz. During ...
, now in the
National Gallery, London The National Gallery is an art museum in Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, in Central London, England. Founded in 1824, it houses a collection of more than 2,300 paintings dating from the mid-13th century to 1900. The current dire ...
, and several examples listed on the 1397 treasure roll of Richard II. In the ''Wilton Diptych'', Richard's own badge has pearls on the antler tips, which the angels' badges lack. The white hart in the badge on the Treasury Roll, which the painted one may have copied, had pearls and sat on a grass bed made of emeralds, and a hart badge of Richard's inventoried in the possession of Duke
Philip the Good Philip III the Good (; ; 31 July 1396 – 15 June 1467) ruled as Duke of Burgundy from 1419 until his death in 1467. He was a member of a cadet line of the Valois dynasty, to which all 15th-century kings of France belonged. During his reign, ...
of
Burgundy Burgundy ( ; ; Burgundian: ''Bregogne'') is a historical territory and former administrative region and province of east-central France. The province was once home to the Dukes of Burgundy from the early 11th until the late 15th century. ...
in 1435 was set with 22 pearls, two
spinel Spinel () is the magnesium/aluminium member of the larger spinel group of minerals. It has the formula in the cubic crystal system. Its name comes from the Latin word , a diminutive form of ''spine,'' in reference to its pointed crystals. Prop ...
s, two
sapphire Sapphire is a precious gemstone, a variety of the mineral corundum, consisting of aluminium oxide () with trace amounts of elements such as iron, titanium, cobalt, lead, chromium, vanadium, magnesium, boron, and silicon. The name ''sapphire ...
s, a ruby and a huge diamond. Cheaper forms of badge were more widely distributed, sometimes very freely, similarly to modern political campaign badges and t-shirts. However, wearing the wrong badge in the wrong place could lead to personal danger. In 1377, when the young Richard II's highly unpopular uncle,
John of Gaunt John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster (6 March 1340 – 3 February 1399), was an English royal prince, military leader and statesman. He was the fourth son (third surviving) of King Edward III of England, and the father of King Henry IV. Because ...
, was Regent, one of his more than 200 retainers, Sir John Swinton, unwisely rode through London wearing Gaunt's badge on a
livery collar A livery collar or chain of office is a collar (jewelry), collar or heavy Link chain, chain, usually of gold, worn as insignia of office or a mark of fealty or other association in Europe from the Middle Ages onwards. One of the oldest and best- ...
(an innovation of Gaunt's, probably the
Collar of Esses A livery collar or chain of office is a collar (jewelry), collar or heavy Link chain, chain, usually of gold, worn as insignia of office or a mark of fealty or other association in Europe from the Middle Ages onwards. One of the oldest and best- ...
). The mob attacked him, pulling him off his horse and the badge off him, and he had to be rescued by the mayor from suffering serious harm. Over twenty years later, after Gaunt's son Henry IV had deposed Richard, one of Richard's servants was imprisoned by Henry for continuing to wear Richard's livery badge. Many of the large number of badges of various liveries recovered from the Thames in London were perhaps discarded hurriedly by retainers who found themselves unwisely dressed at various times. In 1483 King
Richard III Richard III (2 October 1452 – 22 August 1485) was King of England from 26 June 1483 until his death in 1485. He was the last king of the Plantagenet dynasty and its cadet branch the House of York. His defeat and death at the Battle of Boswor ...
ordered 13,000
fustian Fustian is a variety of heavy cloth woven from cotton, chiefly prepared for menswear. History and use Known in Late Latin as ''fustaneum'' or ''fustanum'' and in Medieval Latin as ''pannus fustāneus'' ('fustian cloth') or ''tela fustāne ...
(cloth) badges with his emblem of a
boar The wild boar (''Sus scrofa''), also known as the wild swine, common wild pig, Eurasian wild pig, or simply wild pig, is a Suidae, suid native to much of Eurasia and North Africa, and has been introduced to the Americas and Oceania. The speci ...
for the investiture of his son
Edward Edward is an English male name. It is derived from the Anglo-Saxon name ''Ēadweard'', composed of the elements '' ēad'' "wealth, fortunate; prosperous" and '' weard'' "guardian, protector”. History The name Edward was very popular in Anglo-S ...
as Prince of Wales, a huge number given the population at the time. Other grades of boar badges that have survived are in lead, silver, and gilded copper high relief, the last found at Richard's home of
Middleham Castle Middleham Castle is a ruined castle in Middleham in Wensleydale, in the county of North Yorkshire, England. It was built by Robert Fitzrandolph, 3rd Lord of Middleham and Spennithorne, commencing in 1190. The castle was the childhood home of ...
in Yorkshire, and very likely worn by one of his household when he was
Duke of Gloucester Duke of Gloucester ( ) is a British royal title (after Gloucester), often conferred on one of the sons of the reigning monarch. The first four creations were in the Peerage of England and the last in the Peerage of the United Kingdom; the curre ...
. The British Museum also has a flat lead swan badge with low relief, typical of the cheap metal badges which were similar to the
pilgrim badge Pilgrim badges are decorations worn by some of those who undertake a Christian pilgrimage to a place considered holy by the Church. They became very popular among Catholics in the later medieval period. Typically made of lead alloy, they were sold ...
s that were also common in the period. Apparently beginning relatively harmlessly under
Edward III Edward III (13 November 1312 – 21 June 1377), also known as Edward of Windsor before his accession, was King of England from January 1327 until his death in 1377. He is noted for his military success and for restoring royal authority after t ...
in a context of
tournament A tournament is a competition involving at least three competitors, all participating in a sport or game. More specifically, the term may be used in either of two overlapping senses: # One or more competitions held at a single venue and concen ...
s and courtly celebrations, by the reign of his grandson, Richard II, the badges had become seen as a social menace, and were "one of the most protracted controversies of Richard's reign", as they were used to denote the small private armies of retainers kept by lords, largely for the purpose of enforcing their lord's will on the less powerful in his area. Though they were surely a symptom rather than a cause of both local baronial bullying and the disputes between the king and his uncles and other lords, Parliament repeatedly tried to curb the use of livery badges. The issuing of badges by lords was attacked in the Parliament of 1384, and in 1388 they made the startling request that "all liveries called badges 'signes'' as well of our lord the king as of other lords ..shall be abolished", because "those who wear them are flown with such insolent arrogance that they do not shrink from practising with reckless effrontery various kinds of extortion in the surrounding countryside ..and it is certainly the boldness inspired by these badges that makes them unafraid to do these things". Richard offered to give up his own badges, to the delight of the
House of Commons of England The House of Commons of England was the lower house of the Parliament of England (which Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542, incorporated Wales) from its development in the 14th century to the union of England and Scotland in 1707, when it was re ...
, but the
House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the lower house, the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. One of the oldest ext ...
refused to give up theirs, and the matter was put off. In 1390 it was ordered that no-one below the rank of
banneret A knight banneret, sometimes known simply as banneret, was a Middle Ages, medieval knight who led a company of troops during time of war under his own banner (which was square-shaped, in contrast to the tapering Heraldic flag#Standard, standar ...
should issue badges, and no one below the rank of
esquire Esquire (, ; abbreviated Esq.) is usually a courtesy title. In the United Kingdom, ''esquire'' historically was a title of respect accorded to men of higher social rank, particularly members of the landed gentry above the rank of gentleman ...
wear them. The issue was apparently quiet for a few years, but from 1397 Richard issued increasingly large numbers of badges to retainers who misbehaved (his "
Cheshire archers The Cheshire archers were a body of elite soldiers noted for their skills with the longbow that fought in many engagements in England and France in the Middle Ages. Battles at which there were sizeable numbers of Cheshire archers include Agincourt ...
" being especially notorious), and in the Parliament of 1399, after his deposition, several of his leading supporters were forbidden from issuing "badges of signs" again, and a statute was passed allowing only the king (now Henry IV) to issue badges, and only to those ranking as esquires and above, who were only to wear them in his presence. In the end it took a determined campaign by Henry VII to largely stamp out the use of livery badges by others than the king, and reduce them to things normally worn only by household servants.


The swan as a badge

The widespread use of the swan as a badge largely derives from the legend of the
Swan Knight The story of the Knight of the Swan, or Swan Knight, is a medieval tale about a mysterious rescuer who comes in a swan-drawn boat to defend a damsel, his only condition being that he must never be asked his name. The earliest versions, preserve ...
, today most familiar from
Richard Wagner Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, essayist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most o ...
's opera ''
Lohengrin Lohengrin () is a character in German Arthurian literature. The son of Parzival (Percival), he is a knight of the Holy Grail sent in a boat pulled by swans to rescue a maiden who can never ask his identity. His story, which first appears in Wo ...
''. A group of
Old French Old French (, , ; ) was the language spoken in most of the northern half of France approximately between the late 8th -4; we might wonder whether there's a point at which it's appropriate to talk of the beginnings of French, that is, when it wa ...
called the Crusade cycle had associated the legend with the ancestors of Godfrey of Bouillon ( 1100), the hero of the First Crusade. Although Godfrey had no legitimate issue, his family had many descendants among the aristocracy of Europe, many of whom made use of the swan in their heraldry or as a para-heraldic
emblem An emblem is an abstract art, abstract or representational pictorial image that represents a concept, like a moral truth, or an allegory, or a person, like a monarch or saint. Emblems vs. symbols Although the words ''emblem'' and ''symbol'' ...
. In England these included the important de Bohun family, which used the so-called Bohun swan as its heraldic badge; after the marriage in 1380 of
Mary de Bohun Mary de Bohun (c. 1369/70 – 4 June 1394) was the first wife of Henry Bolingbroke, Earl of Northampton, who after her death became King Henry IV. As she died before her husband came to the throne, Mary was never queen. She and Henry had six ch ...
( 1394) to the future King
Henry IV of England Henry IV ( – 20 March 1413), also known as Henry Bolingbroke, was King of England from 1399 to 1413. Henry was the son of John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster (a son of King Edward III), and Blanche of Lancaster. Henry was involved in the 1388 ...
, the swan became adopted by the
House of Lancaster The House of Lancaster was a cadet branch of the royal House of Plantagenet. The first house was created when King Henry III of England created the Earldom of Lancasterfrom which the house was namedfor his second son Edmund Crouchback in 1267 ...
, who continued to use it for over a century. The swan with the crown and chain is especially associated with Lancastrian use; it echoes the crown and chain of Richard II's white hart, which he began to use as a livery badge from 1390. As well as several of his own white hart badges, Richard's treasure roll of 1397 also includes a swan badge with a gold chain, perhaps presented by one of his enemies mentioned above: "Item, a gold swan enamelled white with a little gold chain hanging around the neck, weighing 2 oz., value, 46s. 8d". He declared to Parliament that he had exchanged liveries with his uncles as a sign of amity at various moments of reconciliation. After Henry seized the throne in 1399, the use of the swan emblem was transferred to his son, the future Henry V, who was made Prince of Wales at his father's coronation, and whose tomb in
Westminster Abbey Westminster Abbey, formally titled the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, is an Anglican church in the City of Westminster, London, England. Since 1066, it has been the location of the coronations of 40 English and British m ...
includes swans. It was also used by his grandson
Edward of Westminster, Prince of Wales Edward of Westminster (13 October 1453 – 4 May 1471), also known as Edward of Lancaster, was the only child of Henry VI of England and Margaret of Anjou. He was killed aged seventeen at the Battle of Tewkesbury. Early life Edward was born at ...
before his death in the
Battle of Tewkesbury The Battle of Tewkesbury, which took place on Saturday 4 May 1471, was one of the most decisive battles of the Wars of the Roses in England. King Edward IV and his forces loyal to the House of York completely defeated those of the rival Hou ...
in 1471. In 1459 Edward's mother
Margaret of Anjou Margaret of Anjou (; 23 March 1430 – 25 August 1482) was Queen of England by marriage to King Henry VI from 1445 to 1461 and again from 1470 to 1471. Through marriage, she was also nominally Queen of France from 1445 to 1453. Born in the ...
insisted that he give swan livery badges to "all the gentlemen of
Cheshire Cheshire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Merseyside to the north-west, Greater Manchester to the north-east, Derbyshire to the east, Staffordshire to the south-east, and Shrop ...
"; the type and number are unknown. The badge was also used by other families; the swan was the crest of the Beauchamp Earls of Warwick, leading supporters of the Lancastrian faction under
Thomas de Beauchamp, 12th Earl of Warwick Thomas de Beauchamp, 12th Earl of Warwick, KG (16 March 13388 April 1401) was an English medieval nobleman and one of the primary opponents of Richard II. Origins He was the son of Thomas de Beauchamp, 11th Earl of Warwick by his wife Ka ...
( 1401).
Eleanor de Bohun Eleanor de Bohun ( – 3 October 1399) was the elder daughter and co-heiress (with her sister, Mary de Bohun), of Humphrey de Bohun, 7th Earl of Hereford (1341–1373) and Joan Fitzalan, a daughter of Richard FitzAlan, 10th Earl of Arundel an ...
, Mary's sister, had in 1376 also married into the
Plantagenet The House of Plantagenet ( /plænˈtædʒənət/ ''plan-TAJ-ə-nət'') was a royal house which originated from the French county of Anjou. The name Plantagenet is used by modern historians to identify four distinct royal houses: the Angev ...
royal family, in the person of
King Edward III of England Edward III (13 November 1312 – 21 June 1377), also known as Edward of Windsor before his accession, was King of England from January 1327 until his death in 1377. He is noted for his military success and for restoring royal authority after t ...
's youngest son,
Thomas of Woodstock, 1st Duke of Gloucester Thomas of Woodstock, Duke of Gloucester (7 January 13558 or 9 September 1397) was the fifth surviving son and youngest child of King Edward III of England and Philippa of Hainault. Early life Thomas was born on 7 January 1355 at Woodstock Pal ...
( 1397), another prominent Lancastrian supporter, and the swan badge was used by his
Stafford Stafford () is a market town and the county town of Staffordshire, England. It is located about south of Stoke-on-Trent, north of Wolverhampton, and northwest of Birmingham. The town had a population of 71,673 at the 2021–2022 United Kingd ...
descendants. Mary and Eleanor were co-heiresses to huge Bohun estates, and disputes over the settlement of these continued until late into the next century, when most of their descendants had been killed in the Wars of the Roses, perhaps encouraging the continued assertion of Bohun ancestry.
Henry Stafford, 2nd Duke of Buckingham Henry Stafford, 2nd Duke of Buckingham (4 September 1455 – 2 November 1483), was an English nobleman known as the namesake of Buckingham's rebellion, a failed but significant collection of uprisings in England and parts of Wales against ...
, a descendant of the Beauchamps, Eleanor de Bohun and Thomas of Woodstock, and John of Gaunt, used the swan with crown and chain as his own badge. He was certainly active in trying to get the Bohun lands, and may well have also plotted to seize the throne, for which he was executed in 1483 by Richard III.


Place and date of manufacture

Another user of swan insignia around 1400 was
John, Duke of Berry John of Berry or John the Magnificent (French language, French: ''Jean de Berry'', ; 30 November 1340 – 15 June 1416) was Duke of Berry and Rulers of Auvergne, Auvergne and Count of Poitiers and Montpensier. His brothers were King Charles ...
, the Valois prince who commissioned two of the most spectacular medieval works featuring white enamel , the
Holy Thorn Reliquary The Holy Thorn Reliquary was probably created in the 1390s in Paris for John, Duke of Berry, to house a relic of the Crown of Thorns. The reliquary was bequeathed to the British Museum in 1898 by Ferdinand de Rothschild as part of the Waddesd ...
, also in the British Museum, and the ''
Goldenes Rössl ''Ronde-bosse'', ''en ronde bosse'' or encrusted enamel is an enamelling technique developed in France in the late 14th century that produces small three-dimensional figures, or reliefs, largely or entirely covered in enamel. The new method in ...
''. He has been considered as a possible commissioner of the jewel, in which case it would almost certainly have been made in Paris, and might have made its way to England after being presented. This might also have been the case if it was commissioned by an English person, especially a royal one. However, there are records of London goldsmiths producing white enamel works for the court, and a reliquary with many figures in white enamel and now in the
Louvre The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is a national art museum in Paris, France, and one of the most famous museums in the world. It is located on the Rive Droite, Right Bank of the Seine in the city's 1st arrondissement of Paris, 1st arron ...
may have been made in London. Other small jewels have survived in England which may have been made in London, either by native goldsmiths or the foreign ones known to have worked there. No more precise date for the jewel than "around 1400" is given by experts; this might have a wider range than many works as style is not much help in dating here. Given the royal collar of the swan, the marriage of the future Henry IV to Mary de Bohun probably provides the earliest possible date. A date Henry IV seized the throne in 1399—when his son would have been using the badge—is perhaps more likely. The difficult technique of adding elements in further colours was not perfected until about 1400, in Paris. Fixing a is more difficult, but white enamel became less fashionable after about the 1430s. Moreover, there was no Prince of Wales between 1413, when Henry V succeeded to the throne, and 1454.


History

Dunstable Dunstable ( ) is a market town and civil parish in Bedfordshire, England, east of the Chiltern Hills, north of London. There are several steep chalk escarpments, most noticeable when approaching Dunstable from the north. Dunstable is the fou ...
, where the ancient roads of
Watling Street Watling Street is a historic route in England, running from Dover and London in the southeast, via St Albans to Wroxeter. The road crosses the River Thames at London and was used in Classical Antiquity, Late Antiquity, and throughout the M ...
and the
Icknield Way The Icknield Way is an ancient trackway in southern and eastern England that runs from Norfolk to Wiltshire. It follows the chalk escarpment that includes the Berkshire Downs and Chiltern Hills. Background It is generally said to be, withi ...
cross some thirty miles north of London, was frequently visited by the medieval elite. Apart from travellers passing through, tournaments were held there at least until the 1340s, and Lancastrian armies used it as a base in 1459 and 1461. The jewel was found in an excavation of the friary, in what seemed to be a deposit of rubble dating from the destruction of the buildings after the Dissolution of the Monasteries. It would appear to have been above ground until that point. However, it must have been overlooked—the scrap value of the gold itself would have prevented it from being merely discarded. After its excavation, the jewel was bought by the British Museum in 1966 for £5,000, of which £666 was a grant from the
Art Fund Art Fund (formerly the National Art Collections Fund) is an independent membership-based British charity, which raises funds to aid the acquisition of artworks for the nation. It gives grants and acts as a channel for many gifts and bequests, as ...
(then NACF); other contributions were made by the
Pilgrim Trust The Pilgrim Trust is an independent charitable grant-making trust in the United Kingdom. The Trust's aims are to improve the life chances of the most vulnerable and preserve the best of the past for the public to enjoy. The Trust awards approxima ...
and the
Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths The Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths (commonly known as ''The Goldsmiths' Company'' and formally styled ''The Wardens and Commonalty of the Mystery of Goldsmiths of the City of London''), is one of the Great Twelve Livery Companies of the City ...
.BM database It is on display in Room 40.


Notes


References


On the jewel

*"BM database": British Museum collection databas
The Dunstable Swan Jewel
*"BM Highlights": British Museum Highlight
The Dunstable Swan Jewel
*Campbell, Marian. ''An Introduction to Medieval Enamels'', 1983,
HMSO The Office of Public Sector Information (OPSI) is the body responsible for the operation of His Majesty's Stationery Office (HMSO) and of other public information services of the United Kingdom. The OPSI is part of the National Archives of the U ...
for
V&A Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (abbreviated V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.8 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and named after Queen ...
, *Cherry, John (1987), in Jonathan Alexander & Paul Binski (eds), ''Age of Chivalry, Art in Plantagenet England, 1200-1400'', Royal Academy/Weidenfeld & Nicolson, London 1987 *Cherry, John (2003), in Marks, Richard and Williamson, Paul, eds. ''Gothic: Art for England 1400-1547'', 2003, V&A Publications, London, (part of text given on BM database) *Cherry, John (2010), ''The Holy Thorn Reliquary'', The British Museum Press, 2010, *Matthews, C. L
"Excavations on the site of the Dominican Friary, Dunstable 1965"
''Mansshead Magazine'', 16, 1966 *Platt, Colin, ''Medieval England: A Social History and Archaeology from the Conquest to 1600 A.D.'', Routledge, 1994 *Robinson, James. ''Masterpieces of Medieval Art'', 2008, British Museum Press, *Stratford, Jenny

and other pages as specified, in ''Richard II's Treasure; the riches of a medieval king'', website by The Institute of Historical Research and Royal Holloway, University of London, 2007 * Tait, Hugh. ''Catalogue of the Waddesdon Bequest in the British Museum'', 1986, British Museum Press,


On livery badges

*Brown, Peter. ''A Companion to Chaucer'', Wiley-Blackwell, 2002,
Google books
*Campbell, Lorne. ''National Gallery Catalogues: The Fifteenth Century Netherlandish Paintings'', National Gallery Publications, London, 1998, *Castor, Helen. ''The king, the crown, and the Duchy of Lancaster: public authority and private power, 1399-1461'', Oxford University Press, 2000, ,
Google books
*Fox-Davies, Arthur Charles. ''Heraldic Badges'', J. Lane, 1907. Reprint by BiblioBazaar, LLC, 2009,
Google books
*Given-Wilson, Chris, ''Richard II and the Higher Nobility'', in Goodman, Anthony and Gillespie, James (eds): ''Richard II: The Art of Kingship'', Oxford University Press, 2003,
Google books
*Siddons, Michael Powell
Heraldic Badges in England and Wales
(partial pdf), 4 vols, Boydell & Brewer, 2009, * Steane, John. ''The Archaeology of the Medieval English Monarchy''. Routledge, 1999.
Google books


Further reading

*Cherry, John. "The Dunstable Swan Jewel", ''Journal of the British Archaeological Association'', XXXII, 1969 *Evans, Vivienne (ed). ''The Dunstable Swan Jewel'', Dunstable Museum Trust, 1982 *Gordon, D. ''Making and meaning: The Wilton Diptych'', London: National Gallery, 1993 * Wagner, A. R. "The Swan Badge and the Swan Knight", ''Archaeologia'', 97, 1959 {{short description, Medieval English brooch made around 1400 Works in vitreous enamel Medieval European metalwork objects Medieval European objects in the British Museum Gold objects Swans in art Badges Individual brooches Heraldic charges