Boars' tusk pendant

This pendant is made from a pair of boar tusks, originally joined by three rivetted bronze sheets. On the two sheets that survive, a scene is lightly embossed, showing a hunting dog confronting a boar at bay. The missing sheet would have probably shown a second dog.The pendant, found on the site of a Roman villa, was probably made both as a trophy of a hunt and as an amulet or protective charm. The brave, warlike nature of wild boars is probably the reason that their tusks were often made into amulets, which would have the power to protect the wearer, whether human or animal, from harm or misfortune.