BOOK FITTING

An incomplete copper-alloy book clasp of medieval to post-medieval date. It is made from two thin sheets of copper alloy riveted together at both ends. The upper surface is rectangular in plan with a wide flared fishtail with a scalloped edge. The opposite end is now broken but would once have borne a hook. The reverse is similar in plan but the fluting is replaced by a plain flat end. The upper surface is decorated with two low-relief concentric rings and a central low-relief cell which is filled with white material. The wider end is decorated with three transverse sunken circular perforations above which the sheet is decorated with a herring-bone design. Two slightly off-centre rivet holes are also present close to this end. A single central rivet hole is present at the opposite end. The reverse of the clasp is undecorated, but the three rivets can be clearly seen. Traces of the leather strap still survive between the two plates. The metal has a mid reddish-brown patina and is very worn. The book clasp is 49.6mm long, 27.6mm wide, 3.8mm thick and weighs 10.9g.

Similar book clasps are known from contexts in York dated to the 15th and 16th centuries (Ottaway & Rogers 2002: 2936-7). Examples from Winchester (Biddle 1990) come from contexts of the mid 16^th century onwards, and one from Norwich has a dated late 16^th-century parallel (Margeson 1993). the date at which they stopped being used is at present unclear.