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Description: | Cast copper alloy button and loop fastener of later Iron Age or early Roman date (50 BC - 200 AD). The head of the button and loop fastener is oval in plan with a raised central boss. In cross section the fastener is oval or D shaped. The edges of the button head are slightly bevelled. The integral cast shank (loop) is attached to one edge of the rear of the button (head) and offset at approximately 75 degrees to the plain of the head. The loop then flattens out to the same plain as that of the head. The loop is complete being triangular in plan and rectangular in cross section. The hole through the loop is triangular. The front head of the button is decorated with a series of cast motifs. These consist of two conjoined raised longitudinal ribs (or swellings) positioned at the front and rear (narrowest points) of the oval head. The central boss is circular and the area around the boss is heavily recessed. It is possible that the overall design is that of a stylised representation of an eye. The reverse of the head is relatively flat, plain and undecorated. The reverse is moulded in such a way that the area at the centre, beneath the boss, is slightly dished or recessed. This must weaken the functional strength of the artefact as two crescents of metal strengthen the back of the button. The whole of the button and loop fastener is a dark brownish green colour with a slightly rolled polished patina. There are, however, a number of areas where this patina has been lost through abrasion. These are mostly located on the external edges of the fastener and are likely to be caused by abrasion in the buried environment.This example would probably fit best into Class III of J.P. Wild's classification of button and loop fasteners in the Roman Provinces (1970). This class (III) consists of teardrop or petal headed fasteners which are broadly dated to the Flavian and Antonine contexts, to the mid 3rd century AD. Wild states that the dating for these is most likely from the late 1st - 2nd centuries AD. However, due to the age of the classification this date range may need to be refined or extended. Thus a larger date bracket of the later Iron Age to Early Roman period (50BC - 250 AD) has been suggested here.The button and loop fastener measures 39.6mm in length, 18.0mm wide, is 12.8mm thick and weighs 11.63 grams.
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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