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Description: | A copper-alloy horse-harness mount in the form of a shield with a rounded base. The shield was probably enamelled originally but none now remains. The arms on the shield are very worn, but appear to be small raised lions rampant and a raised cotised bend. On the reverse is a central attachment stud. The shield is 30.9mm long, 23.3mm wide and 2.9mm thick. The attachment stud is sub-rectangular in section, approximately 5mm by 3mm at the base and 9mm long, narrowing to a blunt point. It is impossible to be certain what arms the mount originally depicted, and it is unlikely that the mount was actually used in person by the individual or family whose arms they were. These heraldic mounts, derived from coats of arms, are fairly common and were probably used to mark possessions or as badges of allegiance. In this case the basic design of the arms, without knowing the colours, is similar in outline to the de Bohun family, a powerful family in the 13th and 14th centuries who were Earls of Hereford amongst other titles, and may indicate a connection to that family. | Publisher: | http://finds.org.uk | Source: | Portable Antiquities | Identifier: | http://finds.org.uk/database/artefacts/r... | Go to resource |
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