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Date: |
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Description: | An incomplete Roman copper-alloy bow brooch.The wings of this brooch are of C-shaped cross section and have straight, parallel sides. At the intact left-hand end is a double vertical groove with central ropework ridge. The underside of the head is damaged, with a short length of a cylinder remaining on the right-hand side. This cylinder contains a length of the copper-alloy axis bar, indicating that the pin was originally hinged rather than sprung; interestingly, however, the surface of this cylinder has been grooved to create the impression of a spring. In addition to this, a hook curves downwards from the centre of the head's underside; this hook is a typical feature of sprung Dolphin brooches but has no obvious function on a hinged brooch such as this. At the back, this hook extends into a double ropework ridge which continues down the centre of the oval-cross-sectioned bow. The break, probably located just below halfway down the bow, is well patinated and almost certainly occurred in antiquity.Length: 30.2mm; width: 31.3mm. Weight: 13.09g.This brooch can be described as a skeuomorph and almost certainly represents a transitional phase between the sprung dolphin brooches, dated AD c. 43-c. 65, and the hinged type of c. 50-c. 75. The recorder has seen only one other bow brooch bearing a false spring: PAS record BH-BEC9DF, which was found approximately 650m to the west of this example. Given the rarity of such skeuomorphs, it seems highly likely that the two pieces are related. A date of AD c. 50-c. 150 was suggested for BH-BEC9DF, which was a T-shaped brooch probably mimicking the sprung dolphin types. Given that this particular example clearly represents a developmental phase of the dolphin type itself, a more closely defined date range of AD c. 50-c. 75 can be postulated.
Original Image | Publisher: | http://finds.org.uk | Source: | Portable Antiquities | Identifier: | https://finds.org.uk/database/artefacts/ | Go to resource |
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