BRACELET

Description:

Thin strip of gold that has been hammered flat, 24mm long, 6mm wide and 0.4mm thick. One end has been broken off, the other narrows and thickens from a flat ribbon towards a buffer shaped terminal bent back along the length of the ribbon.

Dimensions:

11mm long, 2mm wide, 2.5mm thick. Length 24mm, width 9mm, thickness 8mm, weight 1.57g.

Discussion:

The gold terminal and body fragment is that of a Late Bronze Age (1150-750 BC) penannular ribbon bracelet comparable to recent finds such as at West Wight, Isle of Wight (2002:13)

Metal content:

The precious metal content fulfils the requirements of the Treasure Act in that it is greater than 10%.

References:

_____: 2002, Treasure Annual Report 2000, Department of Culture, Media and Sport: Cultural Property Unit

Kurt Adams

________________________________________________________________________________________________

Update with additional information - submitted for publication as part of a larger article in the Transactions of the Woolhope Club.

The bracelet is incomplete and around a third of the original is present. It was originally created from a rectangular bar like ingot which has been hammered and manipulated to create the form. The body of the bracelet has a relatively thin rectangular section which is best described as a ribbon-like; and the two parallel long edges taper evenly from the break and are relatively robust being slightly thickened / hammer shaped. As the sides rapidly taper but they then expand slightly to form a funnel like expanded cylindrical terminal. The terminal is ‘sub-square shaped in section and is folded back upon itself onto the body in a U shape. The break on the body is irregular and raggedy; possibly as a result of modern agricultural activity / ploughing. There is no sign of incised or applied decoration present on any surface. The profile of the bracelet strongly suggests that at one point it had been folded or poorly rolled into a smaller shape – possibly indicating that it had been due to be recycled or more likely be put beyond use as a ritual deposited. The findspot supports this later argument being discovered in an area which was historically waterlogged with significant areas of braded streamlets associated with the water catchment of both the rivers Frome and Loden.

The form of this gold work can be closely paralleled with a hoard of similarly folded gold torcs from the Ellesborough Area, Buckinghamshire (Roberts & Tyrell 2009), a similar but much larger hoard from Priddy in the Mendip Hills Somerset (Minnitt et al 2007), and three twisted gold ribbon torcs with hooked terminals from Cwmjenkin Farm, Heyhope in Powys which were tangled together and crumpled into a ball (Savory 1980, 126). There are also two further Middle Bronze Age flat bronze ribbon torcs known from Somerset from the hoards at Edington Burtle and Wedmore (Inventaria Archaeologica GB, 44, 2: 1-2; Eogan 1983, 124-125). The distribution of this form from the parallels above suggests a strong south western British pattern which somewhat echoes the distribution outlined by Eogan (ibid). Dating of all these artefacts is achieved purely on their simple stylised form and the plain bar-hooked terminals: all of these strongly suggest a Middle Bronze Age date (following: Taylor 1980, 63 & plate 42d) with it being suggested that the Priddy Hoard specifically dates to the period circa 1300 – 1100 BC (Minnitt et al 2007)

References
Basford, F 2014: A gold bracelet fragment from fresh Water, Isle of Wight (IOW-0195D2). Web page available at: https://finds.org.uk/database/artefacts/record/id/594585

Eogan, G. 1983. ‘Ribbon Torcs in Britain and Ireland’, in Anne O'Connor & D.V. Clarke (eds.) From the Stone Age to the Forty Five, 87-126. Edinburgh: John Donald.

Eogan, G. (1994) The Accomplished Art; Gold and Gold-working in Britain and Ireland during the Bronze Age (c. 2300-650 BC), Oxford: Oxbow Monograph 42.

Minnitt, S. Roberts, B. & Payne, N: 2007 A hoard of Middle Bronze Age torcs from Priddy, Mendip Hills – Somerset (SOM-1C2C53) Web page https://finds.org.uk/database/artefacts/record/id/189967 

Roberts, B. and Tyrrell, R: 2009 A hoard of Bronze Age Torcs from Ellinsborough, Buckinghamshire (BUC-C07E88)  Web page https://finds.org.uk/database/artefacts/record/id/266606

Savory, H. 1980. Guide Catalogue of the Bronze Age Collections. Cardiff: National Museum of Wales.

Taylor, J. J 1980 Bronze Age Goldwork of the British Isles. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press

Peter Reavill