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Description: | Description: An incomplete silver pyramidal scabbard mount with worn edges. The mount is hollow and almost square in cross-section, with a base measuring 13.5 x 14.6mm; a broken integral attachment bar runs across from the centre of one of the longer edges to its opposite. The breaks are not particularly worn. The sides rise to a small flat square-topped apex on which is a recess inlaid with a chequerboard design of millefiori glass. The design of the millefiori is a central dark (blue or black) square surrounded by a cross of four white squares with further dark squares in the corners, all then surrounded by a dark red border. The chequerboard design has become a little distorted during manufacture, having been stretched from corner to corner to form a lozenge shape, meaning that the slice inserted in the top of the pyramid does not retain not all of its red border. The four triangular faces of the mount are also recessed, and XRF analyis (below) has suggested that they may have had soldered-on decorative panels, now missing; there are now extensive patches of iron corrosion. The reverse has further iron corrosion, with a patch of green copper corrosion right at the top. There is no further decoration visible on the silver sides or base.Dimensions: base 13.5 mm x 14.6 mm; 7.1 mm tall. Weight: 2.43 g.Discussion: Pyramidal mounts of this type were introduced in the early seventh century, with famous examples in the high-status graves of Sutton Hoo Mound 1. Relatively few others have been found in graves, but they are common accidental losses, with 47 on the PAS database to date (6 in gold, 15 in silver and 26 in copper alloy). The faces are very often inlaid, with niello (for the silver and copper alloy versions) or garnets (for the gold versions). During the course of the seventh century the pyramids become taller and their bases take on more various shapes, becoming circular, hexagonal and octagonal as well as square. Their use is still uncertain, but it seems likely that they were used to help secure the sword in the scabbard.Date: The relatively low shape and small size indicates a date in the first half of the 7th century AD.Analysis: Non-destructive X-ray fluorescence analysis (XRF) of the metal surface on the back of a pyramidal scabbard mount from Hinton St Mary, Dorset, now covered in iron corrosion indicated the body metal of the mount has a silver content of at least 66%. Other elements present on the surface in order of decreasing concentration are iron (presumably corrosion from an associated sword blade), copper, gold, lead, tin and zinc.There is a small millefiori glass inlay on the top of the pyramid. The four side panels are recessed and contain a reddish brown material. The elements detected by XRF are chiefly iron, tin and lead, perhaps the remains of a soft solder which originally fixed a decorative panel to each side. Iron corrosion products may have deposited over the surface of this material during burial, after the panels were lost. (Antony Simpson and Susan La Niece, Department of Conservation and Scientific Research, The British Museum, File No. 7500 16, August 6th 2012).
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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