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Description: | A copper-alloy Medieval ring brooch dating from the 13th to 15th centuries AD. The back is flattened although slightly convex, smooth and undecorated but the other surfaces of the ring, which has a 'D' shaped cross-section, are divided up into sections that form the decorative design of the brooch. The decorative style is formed of ten long-thin barrel shapes that are separated by transverse ribs, of which there are eleven. The barrel shapes are c.8.71mm long but vary slightly, and c.4.17mm at the widest point narrowing to c.2.80mm. The transverse ribs are c.4.10mm by 2.10mm. A transverse rectangular slot has been cut across the centre of one of the barrels and would have acted as a pin rest for the pointed end of the pin; this slot has a width of 1.93mm. Almost opposite this slot are two of the transverse ribs, thinner than the rest at 1.67mm, and side-by-side narrowing to 2.50mm (the thinnest part of the ring) between the two. This gap between the two ribs is the only area of the brooch that does not have a flat back, the groove formed between the ribs continuing all the way round creating a circular cross-section at this point only. This is the location for the pin to be attached to the ring, by curving around the cross-section within the groove, allowing the pin to swivel. If the slot is positioned at 12 o'clock the gap between the two ribs is positioned between 6 and 7 o'clock rather than the 6 o'clock position as would be expected, this might suggest that the pin was designed to have a slightly curved shaft. Dimensions: external diameter 38.87mm, internal diameter 30.86mm, thickness 3.81mm and weight 8.62g. See Hattatt, R. 2007 (p.382-3, fig.241-2, items 1340, 1710, 1711 & 1344) for similar examples. If this is not a ring brooch it would be a single loop frame buckle see Egan, G. 2002 (p.51, fig.32.) but I feel that this is unlikely as similar examples are shown in Hattatt's 'A Visual Catalogue of Richard Hattatt's Ancient Brooches' while nothing as similar is shown in Egan or Whitehead, R. 2003.
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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