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Description: | A copper alloy medieval seal matrix which is 19.5mm tall and 18.6mm in diameter. The matrix is circular with a flat base and a slightly convex top. An oval stem projects from the centre of the base and is topped with a lozenge shaped knop with a circular suspension hole through it. The design and legend are faint and blurred. The picture produced on the impression is of a hound facing right with a hare riding on its back. The hare holds a hawk on its paw. The matrix probably dates from the thirteenth or fourteenth century. There is little corrosion except on the face of the matrix where the letters have become clogged with light green and light brown corrosion products.Irene Szymanski comments that:"The matrix is a very common type, with a subject that goes by the name of "the world upside-down", where normal rules are inverted. Here a hare, the object of the chase, is riding a hunting dog and holding a hawk on its paw. These hares sometimes turn up with a hunting horn, sometimes a bow and arrow, and on occasion ride the dogs facing backwards. Unfortunately, the legend is illegible, but they are usually hunting cries of one form or another. Recorded examples include IHS-BBD2D2, IHS-BBF8F2, and IHS-EEC376."
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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