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Description: | Incomplete cast copper alloy inconclusive Roman toilet implement. The main body of this object is an elongated leaf-shape in plan and flat in section. At the top end the object curves slightly backwards and on the curve is a decorative terminal. The terminal is formed from a biconical knop, 6.82mm in diameter and 4.48mm high, which sits upon a short neck. At the very top of the knop is a further smaller knop, also biconical. This is 2.8mm high and 3.5mm in diameter. At the pointed end of the body, the object extends into a thin, twisted shaft, circular in section, that extends for 16.62mm. This shaft is of equal width along its length and is truncated. The break edge, though not fresh, is not worn smooth, suggesting the damage occurred in the more recent past. One side of the main body is decorated with an incised decoration of random curved lines and short strokes. The reverse is plain. The object survives in good condition with an even grey patina, suggesting the metal is heavily alloyed. The overall length of the object is 60.08mm; it is 13.28mm wide across the curved end, narrowing to 2mm at the twisted shaft. It is 1.6mm thick and weighs 5.76g.
Two similar objects from Staffordshire have been recorded on the database as WMID-E076D4 and WMID-DFA492. Here they are described as nail cleaners without a suspension loop. Both of these records note that a nail cleaner was found during the excavations in Colchester 1971-9. It has the same bead, reel and spool mouldings but has the suspension loop one would expect. This artefact was dated from mid-late 1st century to 2nd century in date (Crummy, 1983, The Roman small finds from excavations in Colchester 1971-1979). Nail cleaners without a suspension loop are not unknown as one was found during the 1964-1966 excavations at Alcester and had a domed subspherical head and two well-defined collars beneath (Cracknell & Mahany, 1994 Roman Alcester: Southern Extramural Area. Part 2: Finds and Discussion).
However the twisted shaft on the object recorded here seems to indicate that this is a toilet implement of some other, as yet unknown, purpose. A short piece on the Staffordshire objects can be seen in the December 2004 edition of Treasure Hunting magazine. | Format: | text/html | License: | http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ | Publisher: | The Portable Antiquities Scheme | Rights holder: | The Portable Antiquities Scheme | Subjects: | archaeology | Temporal: | 50
200 | Source: | Portable Antiquities | Creator: | Caroline McDonald | Identifier: | http://www.finds.org.uk/database/artefac... | Language: | en-GB | Format: | text/html | Go to resource |
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