BROOCH

An incomplete Roman copper-alloy initial T-shaped brooch probably dating to c. AD  50-150. The lower portion of the bow and the majority of the pin has been lost.

At the head of the brooch the wings survive largely complete to a width of 21.5mm The wings are cylindrical, c. 6.1mm in diameter, and each has a shallow incised lines on their front face c. 1mm from the ends. Both are open ended with a copper alloy axis bar visible within. There is a central slot on the underside of the head that accommodates a hinged pin. the pin only survives as the wide attachment loop that can still be rotated around the axis bar. The pin is sub-rectangular in cross section.

The bow has a flattened D-shaped cross-section that becomes flatter down the length of the bow. It projects from the wings with a width of 9.4mm and narrows gradually to a minimum width of 6.3mm. At this point the bow terminates in a worn break such that nothing remains of the brooch's foot or catchplate.

The bow projects from the front of the wings with a width of 9.8mm and gradually narrows down its length to 5.8mm wide at the break. The bow is D-shaped in cross section with a convex outer surface and flat reverse. The bow has moulded decoration consisting of a central raised ridge that has two indentations at its top, the upper being deeper than the second. This central ridge gets shallower till it becomes imperceptible with the bow around half way down its surviving length. The bow is flanked by slight borders on either side down its length.

The brooch has a dark green patina.

The bow is 31.1mm long 21.5mm wide and 14.4 mm thick in profile. It weighs 10.75 grams.

Hattat illustrates several similar brooches including some classed as hinged Dolphin brooches (Hattat 2001: 299, No.890)  and others defined as T-shaped Brooches (Hattat 2001: 30-3).  Mackreth also illustrates similar examples (Mackreth  2011: pl 62, no,12096 64, no 2300) which he groups within his Colchester derivatives under class 10 the south-Western Ordinary group. T-shaped brooches are very variable in the decoration on their bows although incised decoration and raised lozenges, often containing enamel, are common. Bayley and Butcher (2004, 167) suggest this type is mainly South Western in distribution and dates to the later first - early 2nd century AD (c. 50-150.

Similar examples on the database include SOM-88A348, SOM-740103