Rights Holder: Somerset County Council
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Unique ID: SOM-F56DA3
Object type certainty: Certain
Workflow
status: Awaiting validation
One part (hooked section) of a Post Medieval book clasp. The clasp is comprised of two thin sheets of copper alloy riveted together at both ends. The upper surface is rectangular in plan with one end (the strap attachment end) expanded into a scalloped fishtailed end. The opposite end widens into a bar from which projects a hook. The reverse is similar in plan with the hook end expanded into a bar, now partly lost to old breaks but missing the hook and with the fluting at the strap attachment end is replaced by a straight but widened end.
The upper surface is decorated in the centre with two low-relief concentric rings and a central low-relief cell. Between this and the expanded strap attachment end is a transverse row of three circular perforations beyond which the sheet is decorated with rows of incised chevrons with raised lines between, possibly imitating feathers. Between the perforations and the end are two separate copper alloy rivets, one to each side of the central line. There are two central rivet holes present at the terminal on the reverse of the clasp but these are now mis-aligned with the rivets due to damage. Between the central recessed cell and the widening at the hook end are many parallel incised lines arranged in a row and varying in length to form a central triangle flanked by triangles at the sides. There is a third separate rivet running through the centre of this design holding the front and back plates together.
The metal has a mid reddish-brown patina and is very worn. The book clasp is 43.2mm long, 31.9mm wide, 2.4mm thick and weighs 7.68 g.
The form and decoration are typical of book clasps of the early post-medieval period, as discussed by Margeson (1993: 74). Many similar example can be seen on the PAS database e.g. YORYM-9FEF34
Subsequent action after recording: Returned to finder
Broad period: POST MEDIEVAL
Period from: POST MEDIEVAL
Date from: Circa AD 1500
Date to: Circa AD 1650
Quantity: 1
Length: 43.2 mm
Width: 31.9 mm
Thickness: 2.4 mm
Weight: 7.68 g
Date(s) of discovery: Friday 3rd December 2010
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Other reference: SCC020761
Primary material: Copper alloy
Manufacture method: Cast
Decoration style: Geometric
Completeness: Complete
Unmasked grid reference accurate to a 100 metre square.
Author | Publication Year | Title | Publication Place | Publisher | Pages | Reference | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Margeson, S. | 1993 | Norwich Households: Medieval and Post-Medieval Finds from Norwich Survey Excavations 1971-78 | Norwich | East Anglian Archaeology | 74-5 | 452-4 |