HARNESS FITTING

Elaborate Late Saxon cast copper alloy domed openwork disc, probably a harness mount, with a perforation in the centre containing a corroded iron fragment within corrosion indicating a possible missing circular domed head or boss, between six radiating arms, these comprise three undecorated flat-sectioned arms, each of which is perforated (with much iron corrosion within and around perforations) where it joins the bordering outer bar (two of the arms are broken across their perforation), alternating with three elaborate openwork arms, each with an outward-looking animal-head mask from which spring two flanking transverse bars both with a curled terminal lobe and short supporting bar attached to the outside edge, a further bar projects from below the chin of the animal mask and splays to become trifoliate at the junction with the outer edge. Diameter 75-8mm. Weighs 92.08g. Decoration employing three radiating Borre style cat-like animal heads is found on contemporary strap-distributors and disc brooches, e.g. a strap-distributor from Fincham (HER 40291) and a brooch illustrated in Margeson 1997, 20-1, fig.22. 10th century.