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Description: | This wonderfully complete copper alloy Roman toilet spoon is 160.2mm long and weighs 6.72 grammes. It has been manufactured in one piece. The shaft is circular in section, with an average width of 2.6mm and has a moulded, small globular terminal which is 6mm long. The scoop is an elongated oval, being 60.08mm long and 11.72mm at its widest point, with a shallow V-section. Just beneath the scoop, on the shaft, are two parallel-incised lines, which provide the only decoration on an otherwise plain object. The patina is dark green, with some lighter green patches in the scoop. It survives in excellent condition, but with one small crack on the scoop.A close parallel for the scoop shape, but with a more detailed shaft, can be found in Crummy 1983, "The Roman small finds from excavations in Colchester 1971-9", page 60, number 1921. Toilet spoons were used for a variety of purposes, and those with long scoops, such as this spoon, were probably used for extracting cosmetics and ointments from flasks, boxes and pots. As toilet spoons were made throughout the Roman period it would be difficult to give a precise date, though the Colchester example is from the late Roman period c AD 300 onwards.
Original Image | Publisher: | http://finds.org.uk | Source: | Portable Antiquities | Identifier: | http://finds.org.uk/database/artefacts/r... | Go to resource |
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