SCABBARD

A complete cast copper-alloy scabbard chape of late Medieval to Post Medieval (c.1450-1600 AD) date. The cast front has a plain concave back, angled sides and a moulded front. The lower part is shaped like a scallop shell with radiating incised line. At the base of the curve is a projecting biconical knop with a rounded front and flat back. Above the scallop shape the front narrows slightly and has a raised horizontal ban before angling out again slightly with straight sides to the top. Below the band there is three conjoined holes which may have been trefoil shaped or three distinct holes where the bit between them has broken through. Above the raised horizontal band there is two distinct tear dropped shaped holes, side by side. Above this the top is shaped into four projecting rectangular tabs with triangular cut outs between. Attached to the back of the cast front is a plain back sheet which echos the outline of the front apart from the knops at the base and stops in a straight top edge below the indented top of the front plate. Near the top of the back sheet are pierced two holes with a short lengh of wire riunning between them, slightly curved but roughly parallel to the top edge. It is 39.1mm long, 28.8mm wide, 5.1mm thick and weighs 8.8 grams. It has a black surface coating with green and red-brown corrosion patches.

Ward Perkins (1940) illustrates similar chapes (Plate LXXX) and this example is closest to his Type III (ibid p.285) with a similar scallop lower section and indented top. This is a varient on his standard Type III which has a trefiol piercing in the upper part rather than the two holes on this example. He dates them to the late 15th to 16th centurys (ibid p.286).

It is unusual in still having the back sheet attached.