SEAL MATRIX

Style: both the lettering and the device suggest an early date. Later matrices tended to use a design which filled the centre of the matrix rather than, as here, leaving large areas blank. Similarly, although the lettering is difficult to date with precision, the plain, straight letters used are generally much closer to the Roman capitals in use in the twelfth century than the curved Lombardic script used in the thirteenth.

A final point suggesting an early date for this piece is the name of its owner. Osbert is a name with pre-Conquest roots, as it is an Old English name rather than a Norman French one. After the Conquest, the Norman French names of the conquerors gradually replaced native names, and by the middle of the 13th century, other than a few surviving saints' names, Old English names were rare. Osbert may conceivably have been a such a remnant (although there was no saint of the name), but it is more likely that the matrix dates from the period before the loss of native names. For a comparable matrix showing a griffin, see sheet sealmat 38 (IHS-ECF1F5); for a dated example, see A Guide to British Medieval Seals, P.D.A. Harvey & A. McGuinness (P.R.O. & British Library, London, 1996), p. 85, fig. 77.

Inscription: +SIGILL' OSBE__]VI . L__OGEDVNE (The seal of Osbert .....................)

Subsequent actions

Current location of find: Returned to finder
Subsequent action after recording: Returned to finder

Chronology

Broad period: MEDIEVAL
Period from: MEDIEVAL
Date from: AD 1200
Date to: AD 1250

Dimensions and weight

Quantity: 1
Diameter: 38 mm

Discovery dates

Date(s) of discovery: Friday 9th January 2004

Personal details

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Other reference numbers

Other reference: Originally York Sealmat 251

Materials and construction

Primary material: Lead
Manufacture method: Cast