Disc-shaped animal ornament in Style II C

Wheel motifs with three and four spokes shaped like animal heads were common throughout all the Germanic styles preceding the Viking Age.

 

In style II C the mouths of the animals are always beak-like and extruded and often distinguished from the head itself by a curved outline. The mouths are typically either curving downward like a beak (as in this illustration) or extruded straightforward with the upper and lower lips or ends of the jaws pointing in opposite directions.

 

This type of motif is found throughout Scandinavia but is especially prevalent in the eastern regions.

 

Check out the article on Style II C here:

The Anatomy of Germanic Art: Style II C