University of Montana, Maureen and Mike Mansfield Library
Abstract
The purpose of this paper is to study the chatelaine as a marker of gender attribution and overall usage within the Anglo-Saxon culture. Chatelaines are artifacts used to suspend multiple items to be employed for such purposes as grooming, tools, or keys and have been used widely from the Roman occupation of England during which it was used by all genders, to the Ninth Century when it was primarily used by women. As such, it is asserted that a single artifact should not to be solely relied upon to assign a gender identity to a burial, that these should be used with reservation and/or with additional, independent lines of evidence to avoid erroneous conclusions.
By examining the chatelaine’s use as a diagnostic measure of identity within the culture or society and how that limited the possible interpretations it is expected to show that this artifact is not gendered in it’s overall usage and should not be further used to determine gender in Anglo-Saxon research. The overall goal of this research is to show the varied theories that are being used to explore the presence of chatelaine throughout the eras of the Anglo-Saxon culture and further to examine its presence regionally and its treatment by all persons within the cultural periods. Through this, it is hoped that an more inclusive view of Anglo-Saxon culture can be perceived and allow for unbiased and through research into gender, material culture, identity, and society
