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Description: | An incomplete Hod Hill type bow brooch of Roman date, c. AD 43 - c. AD 60 (Hattatt 1985, 56). Length, if straightened 36.0mm, maximum width of bow 7.0mm and maximum thickness of the bow, 2.0mm, Weight 1.94g. The brooch is distorted and forms a U-shape. It is unclear whether this deformation is accidental or intentional. In some respects this brooch is similar to one found at The Poultry, London in 1928 (Hattatt 1982, 94, fig. 38, ref. 60) However, the flat head on this brooch is larger than the London example. It would have had the characteristic curled over end which accommodated the axis bar for the hinged pin. However this part is missing, although the central slot which enabled the pin to rotate freely has survived. The pin is also missing. The head is divided from the bow by a transverse rib and the bow is equally divided into two halves. The upper parallel-sided part, about 4.8mm in width, has a central transverse rib although this is quite indistinct. The lower part, also parallel sided but wider, has a width of 7.0mm. This part is bevelled longitudinally to form two halves, each half having the same dimensions. Below the bow is a short section of the leg with a single transverse rib. The rear face of the brooch is flat except for the stub of the upper part of the catch-plate. The brooch is corroded and in poor condition. There are minute traces of a light green patina but there are no traces of tinning. The breaks are old and abraded. "Hod Hill brooches originated in the Moselle region in Augustan times, and were virtually concurrent with their Gaulish Aucissa relatives. Apart from a few earlier arrivals they were likewise brought over mainly with the Roman invasion of AD 43, and also lasted only for about twenty years before being supplanted by native British brooches. Being largely confined to the areas then so far occupied by the Romans, practically all are found south of Yorkshire. While the most striking feature of Hod Hill brooches is the appearance of side knobs on many of the bows, there is almost as great a number without them. Built like the Ausicca, with the same curled over hinge mechanism, Hod Hills have a shorter head, a shorter bow with less curvature, and a correspondingly longer leg, which is often quite straight or with only a little reverse curvature. The catch-plate is still triangular and of leg length, sometimes perforated, and the foot usually has a terminal knob cast in one piece. Those without side knobs, Hull's type 60, are the most similar to Aucissae. The gently curved bow has straight sides and can be either rectangular or slightly diminishing in width to a clearly defined moulded junction with the leg at about half brooch length. The leg is usually of elongated triangular shape. The decorative bow mouldings are very similar to the Aucissa, and the leg can be plain or decorated, often with a design of punch marks, sometimes with moulded transverse ribs" (Hattatt 1985, 56).
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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