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Description: | An incomplete cast copper alloy strap fitting, in the form of a Jester's head, of Late Medieval to Early Post Medieval dating (AD 1400 to AD 1600).The strap fitting is cast in the form of a jester's head, moulded in high-relief. It has lentoid eyes with a sub-triangular nose and a horizontal groove representing the mouth. The head has a tight hood which forms a border around the face. The only decoration on the hood is a central knop which protrudes over the forehead. There are two pointed, vertical ears protruding from either upper 'corners' of the head. The ears are defined by a lentoid shaped cell with a 'V' shaped profile. The reverse of the ears are flush with the reverse of the object. Integral to the upper edge of the head is a small sub-rectangular protrusion which is broken. It is not certain whether this protrusion was originally a mounting point or further decoration. The break is not recent as the abraded red/brown surface covers the break.Integral to the lower edge of the head are three protrusions. The central protrusion, which is incomplete, consists of a vertical decorative mounting point, is sub-rectangular with a rounded lower edge. The off-set portion of the central protrusion is decorated with a low-relief 'X' on the outward looking face. Either side of this central protrusion is another linear protrusion which is semi-circular in section and terminates with a sub-circular knop which is also semi-circular in section. The reverse of the object is hollow / concave.The strap fitting measures 49.07 mm in length, has a maximum width of 34.13 mm and is 12.81 mm thick. The metal is 2.58 mm thick. It weighs 20.9 g.The strap fitting is a dark green to brown colour, with an uneven surface patina. Abrasion, caused by movement whilst within the plough soil, has resulted in a loss of some of the original surface patina.Three similar strap fittings have been recorded on the PAS database. These are NMS-CF0265, LVPL-861A37 and WAW-406321. The comments that the late Geoff Egan (NFA Medieval and Post Medieval artefacts) made on the example recorded as WAW-406321 are as follows:"I think this jester is, ... end of Medieval/16th century. Not only the patina but the form of what may be a 'strap end' (for a very special costume) or if too large for that some kind of attachment, perhaps actually to a fool's bauble. Jesters seem to have got into the repertoire of general motifs around that time - on ceramic whistles and knife handles."
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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