RARE VIKING CHEST OR DOOR LOCK KEY

9th-11th century AD. Forged iron, about 4 " in length. The bit with tapered projection and offset required inserting the key and locating the bolt within the case. The configuration indicates that the bolt was distant from the keyhole, requiring this peculiar configuration and confounding thieves. See The Mastermyr Find, pl. 4 #2 & 3 for examples of this same form found in Gotland Sweden. Of those, one grip is complex iron basketwork. The other is wood, significantly degraded, its form now obscured. This example has a spatulate grip, with minor loss to the tip only. The great similarity suggests that this example is also from Sweden.