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Description: | A solid-cast copper-alloy figurine in the form of a seated dog, probably representing a handle from the lid of a Medieval vessel.The animal is well moulded and of realistic, if slightly stylised, appearance; the head in particular is overly large and has caricatured features. The animal is seated in an upright, somewhat cramped position, its feet resting upon a roughly rectangular base, the underside of which bears traces of solder and also numerous linear punchmarks, which would have helped to secure it in place. In its current form, without the attached vessel, the animal is not freestanding; rather, the steep angle of the body, coupled with the large head, renders the piece top-heavy. The rounded chest and upper arms of the dog extend smoothly into its back, the width of which gradually declines towards the rump, from where a short, slightly hooked tail projects backwards. This tail is likely to have been practical as well as decorative, preventing over-rotation of the opened lid. The slightly concave base of the tail may also indicate that this point was originally attached to the lid's hinge. The animal's thighs angle outwards from the body, with the lower legs tucked beneath. The hind feet, which point forwards, are stylistically rendered, the left foot in particular being noticeably too wide. On either side of the body, the area between the hindquarters and forequarters is deeply hollow. On one side, the groove separating the upper arm from the body contains an unidentified, red substance. The shoulders and upper arms are largely indistinguishable from one another; the forearms, however, are clearly defined and extend downwards at a steep angle, a 'V-shaped' groove separating the two. The backs of the forefeet touch the fronts of the hind feet and also point forwards. Like the hind feet, they have no surface detail and the toes, for example, have not been defined. The neck is short and of subcircular section. At the top, the neck flares into the back of the head. The width and height of the head gradually decrease from the back to the front. The animal has a wide, flat skull, the centre point of which extends into ridge that slopes down the stop and continues into an upturned nose. This ridge separates the eyes, which are overly large, elliptical, have clearly defined lids and protruding eyeballs. The ears consist of two sub-rectangular mouldings, one on either side of the head, and extend as far down as the lower points of the eyes. The cheeks are rounded and the mouth is of 'V-shaped' section, straight and has clearly defined lips. The grey surface of the object is probably indicative of a high lead content. Patches of corrosion are visible on this surface; overall, however, the piece survives in good condition.Dimensions: height: 48.4mm; length (front of muzzle to tail): 60.3mm; maximum width (at hindquarters): 22.8mm. Weight: 105.18g.The style of this object points towards a Late Medieval date. A lid bearing a canine handle, probably from a salt, was found in a late 14th century level in London and is compared to a complete salt in the Victoria and Albert Museum (Egan 1998: pp. 191-193, nos. 537 and 538). Handles in the form of seated animals are also known from ewers of the Late Medieval period, an example of which is a late 15th century piece illustrated by Lewis (1987: 5, fig. 8C). A comparable artefact, this time in the form of a ewer spout, is NCL-448C88, from Raskelf, North Yorkshire.
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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