GALLEHUS HORNS

pair of gold, horn-shaped artifacts from 5th-century Scandinavia that constituted the most notable examples of goldwork of that period. They were unearthed at Gallehus, Jutland, Den., in 1639 and 1734 and were stolen and melted down in 1802. Replicas made from drawings are now in the Danish National Museum, Copenhagen. The larger horn, which measured more than 2.5 feet (0.75 m) long, bore the runic inscription I Hlewegast [or Laegaest], Holt's son, made the horn. The engraved pictures and symbols (which include animals, hunters, and a three-headed figure), arranged in bands running around the sections of the horns, probably had religious significance.