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Description: | A copper alloy medieval rotary key which is 73.6mm long, 31.8mm wide and 8.2mm thick. The key has a lozenge shaped bow with an oval hole through it. There would have been knops on the corners of the bow, but these are mainly worn away. There is a thick collar which is oval in section under the bow, which is decorated with incised diagonal lines. There is a smaller collar above and below the thick one. The stem is also oval in section and flares slightly at the bit end. The stem is hollow and is damaged at the bit end and on one side. It is decorated with incised circumferential bands arranged alternately in groups of three and singly. The bit is rectangular with a wide cleft in the rear edges near the stem, and two clefts in the front edge. There are alo very shallow grooves on the rear edge at the side furthest from the stem. The surface of the key is glossy and dark brown or black. Parallels can be seen in Ottaway and Rogers (2002) Finds from Medieval York. York Archaeological Trust: York, and a similar example on the database is NMS-F35653.
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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