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Description: | Part of a Medieval copper-alloy book clasp consisting of a cast hinged plate and a small portion of copper-alloy plate. The plate is sub-oval in plan, domed at the front and hollowed at the rear. There is a circular hole at the centre of the dome, and at the terminal there is a complete loop in the shape of a stylised animal head, with a transverse circular perforation. At the attachment end there are two integral projecting arms with a circular hole through each arm to take the separate copper-alloy hinge bar. A small part of the sheet plate survives wrapped around the bar; it has traces of punched decoration.Height: 26.85mm; width: 15.35mm; thickness: 6.64mm. Weight: 8.82g.Parallels for this object come from contexts of c. 1350-c. 1450 AD in London (Egan and Pritchard 1991: 154-155, fig. 101, refs: 720-726) and have been interpreted as book clasps (Egan 1998, 277-280). The clasp would have been secured over a peg in the opposite cover, which would have fitted into the hole in the centre. The loop in the terminal is thought to have held a cord, making the clasp easier to remove from the peg.
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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strap end
An incomplete copper-alloy hinged plate…
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