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Description: | An incomplete copper alloy end looped cosmetic mortar, typically of Late Iron Age to the Early Roman dating (1st to 2nd Centuries AD).The mortar has a plain, relatively shallowed bowed profile, with the suspension loop situated at one end. The loop is incomplete. The opposing end of the mortar is complete, with a rounded knop on the end, almost phallic in nature. The mortar itself has a shallow V shaped cross section. The interior (grinding surface) is smooth.The mortar measures 69.4 mm in length, 8.2 mm width and 10.6 mm high. The grinding surface is 3.5 mm wide and 1.6 mm deep. It weighs 19.7 grams.The cosmetic mortar is dark brown to black colour, with an even surface patina. Abrasion, caused by movement whilst within the plough soil, has resulted in a loss of some of the original surface detail.Cosmetic mortars can be otherwise known as woad or cosmetic grinders. They come as part of a set of two artefacts, the mortar and the pestle. Ralph Jackson published a corpus of known examples in 1985, of which two are similar to this example. No. 20 from Thistleton, Leicestershire (Jackson, 1985, p179) and no. 30 from Colchester, Essex (Jackson, 1985, p.181). Over 187 examples have been recorded on the PAS database.Reference:Jackson, R. 1985 Cosmetic sets from Late Iron and Roman Britain. Britannia XVI, 165-192
Original Image | Publisher: | http://finds.org.uk | Source: | Portable Antiquities | Identifier: | https://finds.org.uk/database/artefacts/ | Go to resource |
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