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Description: | Part of a Medieval lead-alloy personal seal matrix which has been deliberately cut up.The remaining piece represents the top part of what would probably have been a circular matrix. The printing face is of flat section and retains part of its central motif and surrounding legend, the two separated from each other by a groove. The nature of the motif is unclear; the legend, which begins at 12 o'clock, reads SIG[...]W ('Seal of ...w'). An unperforated lug extends straight upwards from the top edge of the matrix. It is likely that any cord would have been wrapped around the base of this lug, where there are a number of transverse incisions. Two straight cuts have been used to truncate the matrix.Length: 25.3mm; width: 26.4mm; thickness: 9.6mm (including handle); weight: 13.4g.Personal seal matrices of this form are generally considered to date from around the late 12th to late 13th/early 14th century. The deliberate destruction of such pieces was doubtless carried out in order to prevent their re-use. Such destruction is well attested, with parallels on the PAS database including SUSS-775302, SF-EC5207 and SF-0D2124.
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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