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Description: | A lead pilgrim??s ampulla dating to the medieval period. The ampulla is of the familiar miniature phial shape with a small semi-circular handle at either side of the neck.
The neck of the ampulla is of unusual form. It is rectangular in cross section, becoming wider the further up the neck you go. The top of the ampulla is enclosed, and so to open the ampulla it looks as if a small hatch was cut into the face of the neck, rather than tearing the top. The neat opening clearly shows that the cut was made with a knife. There is a moulded 'W' below the hatch, and there are three moulded transverse collars below this marking the extent of the neck. The main body of the obverse is decorated with a circle containing obscure radiating lines, some of which may be letters. At the top left of the circle there appears to be the letter 'W' followed by the letter 'J'. The area is very worn however and the lines may just be decoration. The field outside of the circle is decorated with an intense series of cross hatching.
The reverse of the ampulla is decorated on the neck with another letter 'W'. Both 'W's on the neck face downwards towards the main body. If hung as such the letter therefore reads 'W', and if upside down, it reads 'M'. The combination therefore could imply the shrine Walsingham, and/or the person of Mary. Below the letter are four transvers collars. The space between the upper and middle collar is decorated with diagonal lines. The space below is decorated with a row of pellets, and the lowest space is decorated with vertical lines. The main body of the reverse is decorated with a scallop shell motif.
An ampulla is a miniature flask or phial that carried holy water dispensed to pilgrims at shrines and holy wells, and are basically a pilgrim souvenir. They could be suspended and worn around the pilgrim??s neck, or hung up in houses and barns. The water within them may have been in contact with a relic associated with different Saints, and the designs on the ampullas often reflected the figure or relic they were associated with. | Subjects: | Pilgrims | Source: | Portable Antiquities | Creator: | Daubney, Adam - Portable Antiquities Scheme | Identifier: | http://www.findsdatabase.org.uk/hms/pas_... | Language: | en-GB | Go to resource |
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