There are currently no images available.
If you own this object please send us a picture of it.
BROOCH
Unique ID: KENT14
Object type certainty: Certain
Workflow
status: Published 
Cast copper alloy zoomorphic plate brooch in the form of a bird. The wings are formed of simple incised lines. The catchplate is found on the reverse of the brooch, positioned behind the birds tail. There is no evidence for the pin attachment. Brooches of this type usually have a single sprung pin and catch similar to the mechanism used on knee-brooches. Zoomorphic bird brooches are depicted in Hattatt p229 figure 71. Stylistically, this brooch is most similar to number 1161. Hattatt 1161 is an openwork design of an eagle attacking a hare. The example recorded may be an example of this type, with the hare element missing. This would also account for the missing pin lug which would have been located on the reverse of the hare element. The brooch is approximately 36mm long and 19mm wide. Zoomorphic brooches can date from the late 1st century, however they are more common in the 2nd century running into the early 3rd century. If this example is an incomplete eagle and hare brooch, it is of a late 2nd to early 3rd century date.
Notes:
No photograph of this images is available, however a sketch is available on the paper record held at Kent County Council. Due to the quality of the image it has not been added to this database record. The description has been improved based upon the sketch and further details provided on the paper record. However not all details are known. The measurements have been extrapolated from the 1:1 scale sketch, and cannot be taken as exact or accurate values. It is assumed the surface of this brooch was not enamelled, as the record originally referenced "Hattatt p. 226-29, no. 1155 similar to, but this is an enamelled example". This record was originally created before the Portable Antiquities Scheme began using the Central Database, and as such it may fall below our usual standards of recording.
Class: zoomorphic (bird)
Subsequent actions
Subsequent action after recording: Returned to finder
Chronology
Broad period: ROMAN
Period from: ROMAN
Period to: ROMAN
Date from: Circa AD 100
Date to: Circa AD 200
Dimensions and weight
Quantity: 1
Length: 36 mm
Width: 19 mm
Discovery dates
Date(s) of discovery: Friday 1st August 1997
Personal details
This information is restricted for your access level.
Materials and construction
Primary material: Copper alloy
Manufacture method: Cast
Decoration method: Incised
Completeness: Uncertain
Spatial metadata
Region: South East (European Region)County or Unitary authority: Kent (County)
District: Gravesham (District)
To be known as: KENT SHORNE
Spatial coordinates
Unmasked grid reference accurate to a 100 metre square.
References cited
| Author | Publication Year | Title | Publication Place | Publisher | Pages | Reference | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hattatt, R. | 1987 | Brooches of Antiquity: a third selection of brooches from the author's collection | Oxford | Oxbow Books | p. 226-29 | no 1161 |
Similar objects
Find number: IOW-8299EA
Object type: BROOCH
Broadperiod: ROMAN
A fragment of a Roman copper-alloy zoomorphic plate brooch of the ‘eagle and hare’ type (c. AD 150-250).
This brooch is convex at th…
Workflow: Published
Find number: BH-9A5AF1
Object type: BROOCH
Broadperiod: ROMAN
An incomplete copper-alloy plate brooch, dating from the Roman period.
The remaining portion of the brooch takes the form of a stylised ea…
Workflow: Published
Find number: NARC-163C93
Object type: BROOCH
Broadperiod: MEDIEVAL
A small artefact cast in copper-alloy, probably a brooch, possibly a buckle. It is difficult to say from the illustration whether or not the …
Workflow: Awaiting validation
Timeline of associated dates
About Us
About our Site
Find us
The British Museum, Great Russell Street, London WC1B 3DG.
T: +44(0) 20 73238618