BEAD

A complete copper alloy possible spacer bead from a beaded torc, of possibly Late Iron Age in dating (100 BC to AD 200).

The artefact is circular in plan, with a central circular perforation. It has an hour glass or reel shaped in cross section (i.e. concave in the centre). The top of the object is wider than the bottom and has a shallow depression forming an inside circle. The right of the outer circle shows a dent, the object has been damaged, presumably in antiquity. The internal diameter of the central circular perforation is 10.2 mm. The sides are decorated with two concentric circles running around the object top and bottom. The base of the object is circular in plan and has no central shallow depression. It is narrower in diameter than the top.

The object is a mid green and brown in colour and has an uneven surface patina. Abrasion, caused whilst in the plough soil, has resulted in the loss of some of the original surface detail. The artefact appears to be complete, but damage has occurred to both the upper and lower edges, so it is unclear if it was meant to attach to something.

Diameter: Top: 23.8 mm Bottom: 21.1 mm
Thickness: 5.7 mm
Height: 14.9 mm
Weight: 20.9 g

Peter Reavill (FLO - Herefordshire & Shropshire) and Kevin Leahy (NFA - Post Roman Artefacts) have suggested that it could be a spacer bead from a beaded torc. It is similar to one from Mow Road, Rochdale, Lancashire (MacGregor, 1976, no 205).