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Description: | A fragment of an early medieval copper alloy cruciform brooch. This fragment is from the foot of a brooch (e.g. see cruciform brooches in ??A Summary Catalogue of the Anglo-Saxon Collections (Non-Ferrous Metals)?? by MacGregor and Bolick, 1993, pp. 95-111). The fragment described here has a broken edge at the top, curved edges at the sides forming the zoomorphic shape, and two nostrils/side lobes and a spatulate extension at the base. In profile, the fragment is slightly curved, with the base curving forwards. The front is in relief. The upper portion of the reverse is slightly concave, whereas the lower portion, including the nostrils/side lobes and spatulate extension is flat.
On the front of the top of the fragment there is a half-round panel, D-shaped in section and consisting of three horizontal ribs decorated with incised dots. Below this, also in relief, is a horse-head terminal, with circular eyes protruding to either side. Incised dots run down the centre of the horses head design. There are a series of three V-shaped grooves on the snout, the central groove being the widest. The snout gently tapers and immediately beyond a further V shaped groove there are two incomplete nostrils/side lobes which flare out and an incomplete spatulate extension at the base. The nostrils/side lobes and the spatulate extension are decorated with incised ring marks.
The reverse is undecorated although there are a number of groves and striations visible (not recent due to surface condition). The fragment has a well developed green patina, which also appears to cover the broken edge ?? this is not a recent break. The brooch is 43.6mm long, 16.9mm wide across the nostrils/side lobes, with a maximum thickness of 4.2mm at the top of the half-round panel. These are maximum dimensions. The fragment has a mass of 7.8g.
MacGregor and Bolick (ibid. p95) state that only a minority of the cruciform brooches that they catalogued were found in pairs. They suggest, ??they were, it seems, commonly worn singly on the breast, sometimes in association with a pair of brooches of different design on the shoulders. Whether their occurrence in this position is to be interpreted as purely decorative, or whether they may have secured an over-garment such as a cloak remains unresolved. Where the context is known, they are almost invariably found in female graves.?? Cruciform brooches date from the fifth to sixth centuries AD (Geake, ??Finds Recording Guide??, 2001, p21. Some diagnostic features, particularly on the head are missing from this example, complicating closer dating. | Subjects: | Cruciform | Source: | Portable Antiquities | Creator: | Slarke, Duncan - Portable Antiquities Scheme | Identifier: | http://www.findsdatabase.org.uk/hms/pas_... | Language: | en-GB | Go to resource |
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