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Description: | (Piece unseen, recorded from photographs and impression) A circular, copper alloy seal matrix with flat back and suspension loop on reverse. Device of what appears to be a cross paty with a split foot; it also looks a little like the four medieval crucifixion nails. A small inverted T shape fills the space between the feet. Inscription: *S'· HUGONIS· FIL' W'Measurements: 24 mm diameter.The name on the seal can be read as HUGONIS, which is the normal Latin genitive form for Hugh. It may just possibly alternatively be read as a woman's seal. Irene Szymanski commented: Although the lettering on this matrix is quite untidy, it is perfectly legible as S[IGILLUM]'· HUGONIE· FIL[IA]'· W[ILHELMI]. Hugh (often Hugon) is a common male name, generally encountered on matrices in the form HUGONIS, the "IS" added to the name meaning "of". In this case, the name ending in "IE" still means "of", but the "IE" ending is feminine, so Hugon was a woman, not a man. It would be a mistake, however, to think that she was called anything other than Hugon or Hugh, for in the mediaeval period girls often bore what are now thought of as male names. When their names were Latinized, however, they were made feminine, often by the addition of an "A" at the end. A good example is provided by the mediaeval mystic Julian of Norwich; Julian was a woman, but the only time she would have been referred to as "Juliana" would have been if her name was written down in Latin. In time, these feminized names became used as Christian names in their own right, hence names like Philippa, Juliana and Joanna (from Iohan). The matrix may be from fairly early in the 13th century because of the lack of line separating the legend from the device.
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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