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Description: | A copper alloy key of Medieval date, AD1200 - 1500. It has a hollow stem of hollow oval section, a lozenge shaped bow and a simple, rectangular bit. The bow has two straight sides attached to the stem, while the other two sides are slightly concave. The corners of the lozenge are squared and blunted. There is a broad collar between the bow and the stem with a single raised ridge in low relief at each end. The stem is decorated with two groups of three narrow, transverse grooves, one immediately below the collar and one immediately before the bit. The bit has two small, rectangular wards on the outer edge separated by a wide, U shaped groove. There is a channel across the bit parallel with the shaft. A small piece of the outer end of the stem has broken away and is missing. The break is patinated and probably ancient. The key has a light green patina. It is 86.1mm long, 29.5mm wide and 7.9mm thick. It weighs 32.64gm.Keys of this design are illustrated as type 5 in Wheeler, 1940, London Museum Medieval Catalogue, page 135.
Original Image | Publisher: | http://finds.org.uk | Source: | Portable Antiquities | Identifier: | https://finds.org.uk/database/artefacts/ | Go to resource |
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