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Description: | An incomplete cast copper alloy Colchester derivative (Polden Hill style) brooch of Roman date (43-120AD). The wings are incomplete but originally were semi-cylindrical with pierced end caps. The axis bar, spring and pin are lost. A sub-rectangular hollow is present on the reverse of the head of the brooch and does not extend into the wings; this is filled with a grey brown coloured substance, possibly an adhesive paste to hold the pin / spring. The pin / spring would have been secured by an external chord which fitted to a rearward facing hook located at the centre of the wings on the upper edge. This hook is abraded and all that remains is a broken stub. The bow head is hump-like, and angular (comma shaped) in profile. The bow is D shaped in cross section. It extends to a broken edge near the foot which is much abraded. The foot and also the catchplate are lost. It is likely that the catch-plate was sub-triangular and extended from a cast ridge which extends from a point below the head / hump of the bow. The brooch measures 36mm length, is approximately 18mm width across wings, 8mm width across bow, is 6mm thick across the bow. The brooch is decorated with a series of intricate cast designs. The body and bow of the brooch are most decorated but plain sub-circular ridges are present at the junction between the wings and body. The bow of the brooch is decorated with a central ridge delineated by two cast grooves which extend from the rearward facing hook on the head to the broken foot. This central ridge has a series of sub-triangular shaped tessellating triangles formed by a zig-zag line. Each of these smaller panels act as a key for a line of grey coloured surface possibly washed metal or decayed enamel which would originally have extended from the head to foot of the brooch. The brooch is a mid grey green colour with an even but heavily abraded patina. Where abrasion has occurred patches of light green corrosion product are present. Movement in the plough soil has also distorted the profile of the brooch. Similar brooches can be seen in Richard Hattatt's Visual Guide to Ancient brooches pp 300 fig; 159 and Bayley and Butcher: Roman Brooches in Britain pp 89-92. A direct parallel for the decoration has not been found. This style of brooch is usually dated to the early Roman period, 1st -early 2nd century, and are thought to be a local brooch type typical of the West Midlands and Mid Wales.
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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