The terminations of the penannular ring soon become so expanded that they fill up exactly half the ring.
Some take the form of a penannular wire loop holding a thimble-shaped cage of filigree, the flat end of which is closed, and has in the centre a setting for a precious stone.
The first type is penannular in shape, one end terminating in the head of a bull or lion, and the other in a point which pierces the ear.
Another theory traces the Celtic brooch from a combination of a long pin with the ancient dress fasteners--penannular rings furnished with knobs--such as are found in prehistoric graves, and are even now worn by the natives of West Africa.
The penannular brooch, known as the Celtic brooch, so common in other parts of the British Isles about this period, has rarely been found in England.
A slight enlargement of the ends of the penannular ring develops into a cup-like expansion, which increases to such a size that the ring becomes simply the connecting link between the terminations.
The developments in the form of this brooch show its evolution from a penannular to an annular ring.
The simplest of the silver penannular brooches with discoidal terminations in the museum at Edinburgh is one from Croy in Inverness-shire.
The Celtic brooch, with penannular ring and long pin, is apparently the result of fitting a pin to a prehistoric form of fastening for the dress--a penannular ring terminating with knobs, known as a mammillary fibula.
This enamel, executed by the champlevé process on copper and bronze, served for the decoration of massive bronze penannular bracelets, and for bronze pins with wheel-shaped heads.
The torques are mostly penannular and have enlarged terminals; the armlets are often complete rings.
Large penannular rings of various materials were occasionally employed as ear ornaments; the opening in them enabling them to be fitted on to the upper part of the ear.
It has been suggested that the simple penannular rings were nose-ornaments, and when linked or strung together were worn as necklaces; also that the more decorative rings were earrings.
In shape they were oval and penannular with expanding or trumpet-shaped ends, having an opening between them of about half an inch to enable them to be easily slipped over the wrist.
The other class were stiff penannular hoops, capable of being slightly opened.
From the same crannog came the penannular ring or brooch (fig.
At the crannog of Lisnacroghera were found two penannular rings, formed of very thin, golden-coloured bronze.
Attention has been called to the similarity of these Irish gold rings to the penannular copper rings plated with gold often found in early Japanese burials.
The large number of penannular rings with cup-shaped ends which have been found from time to time in the island, brings us on to the general question of the so-called Irish fibulæ.
In Ireland penannular rings with cup-shaped ends of copper or bronze are very rare, only about half a dozen being known, while fibulæ of gold are exceedingly common.
As has been mentioned, the objects of this find did not show any remarkable types, and for the most part consisted of very thin bracelets and penannular rings with cup-shaped ends.
Eboe country of West Africa and the so-called penannular rings or ring money (Fig.
By this means their exact resemblance to the gold and bronze 'penannular rings' found in Ireland (Fig.
The penannular ring, inserted through a hole at the head of the long pin, could be partially turned when the pin had been thrust through the material in such a way that the brooch became in effect a buckle.
The Celtic group is characterized by the penannular form of the ring of the brooch and the greater length of the pin.
A variety of annular and penannular rings, some hollow (Nos.
Bronze penannular brooch, and a bronze ornament with trumpet-shaped spaces, probably for enamel (Proc.
Ludwig Becker of a skeleton with several penannular bronze rings on the arm bones, found recently in a large tumulus near Mayence.
Amongst the native personal ornaments in the Scottish Museum, is a massive but plain penannular ring of the class to which the name of solid torc is now applied.
It must either have been a solid torc, or an unusually large dilatedpenannular ring.
One of these composite penannular relics, in the Museum of the Scottish Antiquaries, was found in the Isle of Skye.
These include several varieties of penannular rings not greatly differing in general form from the British gold relics already described under that name.
Illustration: Slateford Armilla] The bronze armillæ clearly assignable to the Archaic Period are mostly of a very simple character, consisting either of solid or penannular rings, or more rarely of a thin spiral band of the metal.
Somewhat analogous to the dilated penannular rings are another class of gold ornaments, which, so far as I am aware, have never yet been discovered except in the British Isles.
The above list will hopefully give you a few useful examples demonstrating the appropriate usage of "penannular" in a variety of sentences. We hope that you will now be able to make sentences using this word.
