Brent Berry Arts
Hammer of Thor - Wall Plaque
Mjolnir - Mjølner - Mjölner - Mjölnir
A large brass Thor's Hammer Symbol mounted on copper covered wood
I started this Thor's Hammer many months ago but It took a long time to complete it because of a problem with my neck and shoulder. I'm better now and I've finally completed it. This was a tough one to do. Brass is not an easy metal to emboss and the hammer symbol is a very thick piece of brass, 18 gauge!
Description:
I made the Thor's Hammer symbol out of heavy brass and then made some smaller embossed pieces from thinner brass and silver to mount onto the hammer. In the center of the head is a repoussé silver disc which holds a dark green 25 mm Moss Agate cabochon. On the handle I've mounted a reddish-brown 12 mm Agate cabochon. The mounts are a bit crude. On the top is a 2 inch wide repoussé brass disc holding the old Viking sun wheel symbol. I tapped a bit too hard with the hammer while doing the design on this disc. The tool actually broke through the metal in couple places (see photo). They are not very obvious, it happens occasionally and is seen in many ancient works. The Thor's Hammer symbol is mounted on a pine base that is covered with a piece of hard copper sheet. The copper piece is attached with 14 large ornate nails with embossed brass washers in the style of old shields.
After all the separate pieces were completed and ready to assemble, I used acid and diluted metal bluing solution to age and tarnish the copper, brass and silver. After all metal parts were tarnished, I assembled everything and lightly cleaned the surfaces to get a nice patina, to give it that ancient look. You never know how the metal is going to react to the aging processes. It never turns out exactly when a plan it. Every piece of metal reacts differently and there are usually random spots and areas that are darker or lighter to some degree. Even though they are not planned, they add to the character of the piece.
This piece will most likely continue to tarnish over the years because it is bare metal. I could spray a flat clear protective sealer over the whole thing to keep the tarnish as it is now but the protective coating would be obvious. It will always look better without it in my opinion. Let it tarnish! You can always lightly polish it with a soft cloth to keep the upper surfaces of the detail standing out well. It is the tarnish/patina that emphasizes the detail of the design and adds character to the piece. If it becomes more ancient looking with time, so be it!
The backside reveals crude looking but effective support braces made of hard copper sheet. This is old copper that I've had sitting around for years. I just left the tarnish on it because it looks good and matches the piece fairly well, although no one will see it. The top copper brace has a triangle hole in it for hanging the plaque on the wall.
As usual, I don't put my name on the front side of this kind of work. I spend a lot of time and effort to make these things look like ancient relics, adding my name Brent Berry written in English would greatly lessen the authentic appearance in my opinion. I always mark my metal work with a tiny crown and a tiny cross stamped directly on the front of the metal artwork My name and the date of completion are marked on the back.
This is not that cheap piece but I guarantee it is worth every strike of my hammer and a bit of blood too.
I'll never repoussé another design into brass this thick again!
Dimensions of the hammer: 12" X 8"
Dimensions of the plaque: 18" X 14 .5"
Weight: 6 pounds
Hammer of Thor - Wall Plaque, Item # HT-WP $1000. Free Shipping in the USA!
In overcast lighting
Another view
Another view in different lighting
Details of the top
12 mm red cabochon
Design on center of handle
25 mm Moss Agate cabochon mounted over a silver repoussé disc
Embossed shield designs and decorative mails (nails not made by me)
My marks
A close-up of the edge from the backside to show how sick the brass is.
I used a triangle shaped tool on the back it on the front side, the shape looks round.
The 2 small tears in the top repoussé disc design, caused by tapping the tool too hard
This piece looks dark in this photo because it was taken before I had removed the tarnish.
The backside
I don't know why the photo turned out that dark color.
A triangle opening for hanging the plaque on the wall
