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Description: | A silver-gilt, incomplete mount or pendant of Medieval date. The fragment takes the form of a crowned lion right. The back is flat, and has sustained many scratches to the surface. The upper surface has been moulded and the lion's mane is formed by a series of irregularly shaped pellets that extend down to and around the shoulders of the fore legs. The front left leg is raised. The fore and hind right legs both have transverse breaks with the lower limbs missing. The lion is positioned passant. The tail is missing. A fragment of thin metal protrudes from the area behind the lion's neck and upper half of the back and ends with an irregular break. At the edge of the break the thin sheet increases in thickness as if to form a thin raised line. It is uncertain what has broken off of the artefact in this area however one possibility could be that the lion's tail curved upwards and along the lion's back re-curving behind the crown. A second possibility is that the raised line formed part of an attachment loop. On the reverse of the artefact, over the lion's rump, is an additional lump of metal that seems to have been soldered on. The purpose of this blob is uncertain but it might have attached the base of the tail if this part was not integral to the main body of the artefact. There is no obvious zone of break to represent the original location of the beast's tail so the proposal that the tail was an additional part is feasible. The edge of the artefact is rougher just above the transverse break of the hind right leg so this could possibly be the location of a narrow tail if it was integral to the body.Weight 1.04g, maximum length 16.55mm, maximum height 15.68mm, thickness 2.47mm.Discussion: This fragment might be part of a harness pendant as is the case for similar items recorded in PAS records LIN-6B7A31 & SF-0F8F83, which have a date range of c.1275-1450. Also see NARC-2D7DB3 identified as part of a 19th century badge.British Museum Curator's report reads:"A medieval mount in the shape of a lion. The lion is missing its back leg and one of its front legs. Between the shoulder and the waist there is a metal projection terminating in a curved band with a broken edge. The lion appears to wear a three-pointed crown. On the reverse are the remains of a stud.The lion is silver-gilt and dates from the thirteenth century. Dimensions: length 16 mm, height 11 mm. J P RobinsonCurator of Medieval Collections9th August 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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