|
Date: |
|
Description: | A Roman Copper alloy key with fleur de lys style openwork handle and corroded iron bit. The copper alloy handle, in excellent condition, has a light grey sheen and may be leaded bronze. The fleur de lys openwork handle has a larger central lobe, 35.49mm high, topped by an integral globular knop with an incised groove around its circumference. All three lobes have internal flourishes or leaves, and a a pair of external leaves are located at the base of the design. The whole sits on top of a rectangular collar decorated with a pair of horiziontal incised lines. This collar tapers towards the base where it meets a second identical but inverted feature. This double collar, 24.03mm long in total, then leads to the shank, circular in section and 11.78mm diameter, which is itself attached to a hollow and badly corroded iron shank with an incomplete bit. The entire key is 130.85mm long, the hand being 80.58mm and the shank and bit being 51.23mm long.This object has previously been illustrated and described in Read, 2001, p.69 fig. 43, no.521. A similar handle was excavated at the Balkerne Lane site in Colchester where it was dated to the 4th century AD or later, although this style of key is generally dated to later than 150 AD. Similar keys recorded on the PAS database include: DENO-04A217, Roman key from Whitwell, Derbyshire; ESS-83F497, Roman key from Roxwell, Essex; ESS-E75563, Roman key from Canvey Island.
Original Image | Publisher: | http://finds.org.uk | Source: | Portable Antiquities | Identifier: | http://finds.org.uk/database/artefacts/r... | Go to resource |
|
|