Greek Fibulae

There is a huge diversity of Greek fibula types. There are many ways of breaking down the types. This list uses the typology of Blinkenberg from 1923. There may be more efficient means today.

Mycenaean

Mycenaean Simple Bow Fibula (Blinkenberg I.1)

Mycenaean Twisted Bow Fibula (Blinkenberg I.2)

Mycenaean Spiral at Catch Fibula (Blinkenberg I.3)

Mycenaean Decorated Bow Fibula (Blinkenberg I.4)

Mycenaean Bow Fibula with Buttons at Ends (Blinkenberg I.5)

Mycenaean Decorated Bow Fibula with Buttons at Ends (Blinkenberg I.6)

Mycenaean Hammered Bow Fibula (Blinkenberg I.7)

Mycenaean Decorated Hammered Bow Fibula (Blinkenberg I.8)

Mycenaean Hammered Bow Fibula with Button Hammered Bow (Blinkenberg I.9)

Mycenaean Bow Fibula with High Catch (Blinkenberg I.10)

Mycenaean Concave Bow Fibula (Blinkenberg I.11)

Mycenaean Decorated Concave Bow Fibula (Blinkenberg I.12)

Mycenaean Serpentine Bow Fibula (Blinkenberg I.13)

Mycenaean Horse-shaped Bow Fibula (Blinkenberg I.14)


Sub-Mycenaean

Sub-Mycenaean Simple Bow Fibula (Blinkenberg II.1)

Sub-Mycenaean Simple Bow with Small Spring-loop Fibula (Blinkenberg II.2)

Sub-Mycenaean Rhomboidal Section Bow Fibula (Blinkenberg II.3)

Sub-Mycenaean I-bar Section Bow Fibula (Blinkenberg II.4)

Sub-Mycenaean Flat Bow Fibula (Blinkenberg II.5)

Sub-Mycenaean Enlarged Bow Fibula (Blinkenberg II.6)

Sub-Mycenaean Twisted Bow Fibula (Blinkenberg II.7)

Sub-Mycenaean Twisted Bow with Small Spring-loop (Blinkenberg II.8)

Sub-Mycenaean Twisted Bow with Larger Catch (Blinkenberg II.9)

Sub-Mycenaean Bow with Buttons at Ends (Blinkenberg II.10)

Sub-Mycenaean Bow with Buttons at Ends and Tall Catch (Blinkenberg II.11)

Sub-Mycenaean Thick Bow Fibula (Blinkenberg II.12)

Sub-Mycenaean Globular Bow Fibula (Blinkenberg II.13)

Sub-Mycenaean Bow with Bi-conical Globular Expansion Fibula (Blinkenberg II.14)

Sub-Mycenaean Asymmetric Bow Fibula (Blinkenberg II.15)

Sub-Mycenaean Twisted Asymmetric Bow Fibula (Blinkenberg II.16)

Sub-Mycenaean Decorated Asymmetric Bow Fibula (Blinkenberg II.17)

Sub-Mycenaean Lightly Asymmetric Bow Fibula (Blinkenberg II.18)

Lightly Asymmetric Thick Bow Fibula (Blinkenberg II.19)

Sub-Mycenaean Asymmetric Bow Fibula with High Catch (Blinkenberg II.20)

Sub-Mycenaean I-bar Asymmetric Bow Fibula (Blinkenberg II.21)

Sub-Mycenaean Square Form Bow Fibula with High Catch (Blinkenberg II.22)

Sub-Mycenaean Wide Bow Fibula with High Catch (Blinkenberg II.23)


Intermediary Type

Intermediary Type Twisted Bow Fibula with Triangular Catch (Blinkenberg III.1)

Intermediary Type Twisted Bow Fibula with Square Catch (Blinkenberg III.2)

Intermediary Type Twisted Bow Fibula with Two Spirals and Triangular Catch (Blinkenberg III.3)

Intermediary Type Rhomboidal Section Bow Fibula with Two Spirals (Blinkenberg III.4)

Intermediary Type Bow Fibula with Globular Pearls (Blinkenberg III.5)

Intermediary Type Bow Fibula with Multiple Spirals (Blinkenberg III.6)

Intermediary Type Bow Fibula with Asymmetric Rectangular Catch (Blinkenberg III.7)

Intermediary Type Enlarged Bow Fibula (Blinkenberg III.8)

Intermediary Type Enlarged Bow Fibula with Square Catch (Blinkenberg III.9)

Intermediary Type Bow Fibula with Spherical Buttons (Blinkenberg III.10)

Intermediary Type Bow Fibula with Spherical Buttons and Claviform Catch Start (Blinkenberg III.11)

Intermediary Type Bow Fibula with Three Cubes plus Buttons (Blinkenberg III.12)


Cycladic Types

Cycladic Small Simple Bow Fibula (Blinkenberg IV.1)

Cycladic Bow Fibula with Two Buttons (Blinkenberg IV.2)

Cycladic Enlarged Bow Fibula (Blinkenberg IV.3)

Cycladic Enlarged Bow Fibula with High Spine (Blinkenberg IV.4)

Image: A Greek bow fibula with high spine (rounded point on bow). The catch plate is broken and was originally much bigger. The "head" ends in a loop which has iron staining. This example likely had a separate iron pin attached. The type is wide-spread, being found in Crete and the Greek Isles, the Balkans and northern Italy. In Bulgaria it is known as Genceva type AII3e. The type dates to the 8th - 7th century BC.  (SC Collection)

Cycladic Enlarged Bow Fibula Decorated with Water Fowl (Blinkenberg IV.5)

Cycladic Bow Fibula with Large Rectangular Catch (Blinkenberg IV.6)

Image: A little fat Greek bow fibula with large rectangular catch. The bow is solid making the piece quite heavy. The pin is broken. In Bulgaria the type is known as Genceva type AII3b. It dates to the 8th century BC.  (SC Collection)

Image: Top view of the above fibula showing how fat the bow is.

Cycladic Bow Fibula with Large Rectangular Decorated with Water Fowl (Blinkenberg IV.7)

Cycladic Bow Fibula with Buttons and Large Rectangular Catch (Blinkenberg IV.8)

Cycladic Bow Fibula with One Ball and Large Rectangular Catch (Blinkenberg IV.9)

Cycladic Small Bow Fibula with One Large Ball (Blinkenberg IV.10)

Cycladic Bow Fibula with Round Button Between Two Pairs of Lenticular Buttons (Blinkenberg IV.11)

Cycladic Bow Fibula with Five Lenticular Discs (Blinkenberg IV.12)

Cycladic Bow Fibula with Series of Buttons on Bow (Blinkenberg IV.13)

Cycladic Bow Fibula with Large Buttons and High Catch (Blinkenberg IV.14)

Cycladic Bow Fibula with Animal Figures (Blinkenberg IV.15)

Cycladic Enlarged Bow Fibula with Central Ridge (Blinkenberg IV.16)

Imitative Cycladic Fibula Types (Blinkenberg IV.17)


Epirote Types

Epirote Leech Bow Fibula with Two Lateral Knobs and Long Foot (Blinkenberg V.1)

Image: Epirote Greek fibula with leech-shaped bow and three knobs. This type is found on the Adriatic coast of Greece, Albania, Montenegro and Croatia. It is dated to level VIe at Dodone, likely the late 8th and 7th century BC. It may have lasted into the 6th century BC further north.  (SC Collection)

Epirote Leech Bow Fibula with Two Lateral Knobs with Disc Ends and Long Foot (Blinkenberg V.2)

Epirote Leech Bow Fibula without Lateral Knobs with Long Foot (Blinkenberg V.3)

Thessalian Types

Thessalian Wide Bow Fibula with Two Lateral Knobs (Blinkenberg VI.1)

Thessalian Flat Bow Fibula (Blinkenberg VI.2)

Thessalian Circular Section Bow Fibula (Blinkenberg VI.3)

Thessalian Decorated Circular Section Bow Fibula (Blinkenberg VI.4)

Thessalian Circular Section Bow Fibula with Spine (Blinkenberg VI.5)

Thessalian Circular Section Bow Fibula with Spine and Two Lateral Knobs (Blinkenberg VI.6)

Thessalian Wide Bow Fibula (Blinkenberg VI.7)

Thessalian Wide Bow Fibula with Spine (Blinkenberg VI.8)

Thessalian Bow Fibula with Spherical Button (Blinkenberg VI.9)

Thessalian Bow Fibula with Cubic Button (Blinkenberg VI.10)

Thessalian Bow Fibula with Three Balls (Blinkenberg VI.11)

Thessalian Enlarged Bow Fibula (Blinkenberg VI.12)

Thessalian Enlarged Bow Fibula with Two Buttons (Blinkenberg VI.13)

Thessalian Enlarged Bow Fibula with Two Buttons and Spine (Blinkenberg VI.14)

Thessalian Enlarged Bow Fibula with Two Buttons and Decorated Spine (Blinkenberg VI.15)

Thessalian Enlarged Bow Fibula with Two Pairs of Buttons (Blinkenberg VI.16)

Thessalian Decorated Enlarged Bow Fibula with Two Pairs of Buttons and Decorated Spine (Blinkenberg VI.17)

Thessalian Bow Fibula with Spherical Button and Two Rings (Blinkenberg VI.18)

Thessalian Bow Fibula with Spherical Button and Four Rings (Blinkenberg VI.19)

Thessalian Bow Fibula with Spherical Button and Six Rings (Blinkenberg VI.20)

Thessalian Bow Fibula with Three Buttons (Blinkenberg VI.21)

Thessalian Bow Fibula with Three Buttons and Two Rings (Blinkenberg VI.22)

Thessalian Bow Fibula with Three Enameled Buttons and Two Rings (Blinkenberg VI.23)

Thessalian Bow Fibula with Three Buttons and Four Rings (Blinkenberg VI.24)

Thessalian Bow Fibula with Three Ring-Rimmed Buttons (Blinkenberg VI.25)

Thessalian Bow Fibula with Three Ring-Rimmed Enameled Buttons (Blinkenberg VI.26)

Thessalian Bow Fibula with One Round Button between Two Square (Blinkenberg VI.27)

Thessalian Bow Fibula with One Square Button between Two Round (Blinkenberg VI.28)

Helladic Types

Helladic Bow Fibula with Faceted Pearl (Blinkenberg VII.1)

Helladic Bow Fibula with Elongated Pearl (Blinkenberg VII.2)

Helladic Bow Fibula with Rhomboidal Pearl (Blinkenberg VII.3)

Helladic Bow Fibula with Lateral Spines (Blinkenberg VII.4)

Helladic Boat Fibula Bow (Blinkenberg VII.5)

Helladic Bow Fibula with Spherical Pearl (Blinkenberg VII.6)

Helladic Ribbed Bow Fibula with Spherical Pearl (Blinkenberg VII.7)

Helladic Bow Fibula with Three Pearls (Blinkenberg VII.8)

Helladic Ribbed Bow Fibula with Three Pearls (Blinkenberg VII.9)

Helladic Bow Fibula with Faceted Buttons (Blinkenberg VII.10)

Helladic Ribbed Bow Fibula with Faceted Buttons (Blinkenberg VII.11)

Helladic Bow Fibula with Spherical Pearl and Two Rings (Blinkenberg VII.12)

Helladic Ribbed Bow Fibula with Spherical Pearl and Two Rings (Blinkenberg VII.13)

Helladic Rhomboidal Section Bow Fibula (Blinkenberg VII.14)

Helladic Bow Fibula with Three Cubes and Two Pearls (Blinkenberg VII.15)


Attico-Boeotian Type

Attico-Boeotian Bow Fibula with High Triangular Catch (Blinkenberg VIII.1)

Attico-Boeotian Bow Fibula with Small Square Catch (Blinkenberg VIII.2)

Attico-Boeotian Solid Bow Fibula with Small Square Catch (Blinkenberg VIII.3)

Attico-Boeotian Bow Fibula with Large Square Catch (Blinkenberg VIII.4, 5, 6)

Attico-Boeotian Two-Shell Bow Fibula with Large Square Catch (Blinkenberg VIII.7)

Attico-Boeotian Three-Shell Bow Fibula with Large Square Catch (Blinkenberg VIII.8)

Attico-Boeotian Four-Shell Bow Fibula with Large Square Catch (Blinkenberg VIII.9)

Attico-Boeotian Five-Shell Bow Fibula with Large Square Catch (Blinkenberg VIII.10)

Attico-Boeotian Six-Shell Bow Fibula with Large Square Catch (Blinkenberg VIII.11)

Attico-Boeotian Crescent Bow Fibula (Blinkenberg IX.1)

Attico-Boeotian Thin Circular Bow Fibula (Blinkenberg IX.2)


Disc Plate

Oblong Disc Pate Fibula with Two large Circles and Two Small (Blinkenberg XV.1 - 7)

Quatrefoil Disc Pate Fibula (Blinkenberg XV.8)

Round Disc Pate Fibula (Blinkenberg XV.10, 11)

Quadrangular Disc Pate Fibula (Blinkenberg XV.12 - 14)

Diverse Disc Pate Fibula (Blinkenberg XV.15 - 17)


Bow with Square Catch

 


References

Blinkenberg, C. Fibules grecques et orientales. (Copenhagen, 1926).