Rights Holder: Kent County Council
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HAIR PIN
Unique ID: KENT-188DA4
Object type certainty: Certain
Workflow
status: Published 
A fragment of a cast copper-alloy pin of Roman date (c.AD250-400).
Description: The pin remains as the polyhedral head and a small section of the sub-circular shank which is now bent at the base. The head of the pin has 14 facets, six of which are large and lozengiform, the remaining being comparatively small and triangular. There is no visible decoration on the facets. The patina of the pin is dark grey with heavy pitting.
Measurements: length: 14.6mm; width: 8.6mm; weight: 4.61g
Discussion: Pins of this shape have been found in early medieval contexts but the absence of a collar on the example recorded here points to a Roman date. These pins are clasified by Cool (1990) as Group 15 (Faceted Head pins) with six examples illustrated (p.163, fig.9, nos.9-I4) and dated late third to 4th century. Three examples of such pins are also illustrated in Crummy (1983 p.29 nos. 486-490), all found in contexts dated post AD 250.
Class: Cool Group 15
Subsequent actions
Subsequent action after recording: Returned to finder
Chronology
Broad period: ROMAN
Period from: ROMAN
Period to: ROMAN
Date from: Circa AD 250
Date to: Circa AD 410
Dimensions and weight
Quantity: 1
Length: 14.6 mm
Width: 8.6 mm
Weight: 4.61 g
Personal details
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Materials and construction
Primary material: Copper alloy
Manufacture method: Cast
Completeness: Incomplete
Spatial metadata
Region: South East (European Region)County or Unitary authority: Kent (County)
District: Dover (District)
Parish or ward: St. Margaret's At Cliffe (Civil Parish)
Spatial coordinates
4 Figure: TR3645
Four figure Latitude: 51.15555638
Four figure longitude: 1.37351213
1:25K map: TR3645
1:10K map: TR34NE
Grid reference source: Generated from computer mapping software
Unmasked grid reference accurate to a 1 metre square.
References cited
No references cited so far.
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Timeline of associated dates
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