A sheet copper-alloy thimble of Medieval to post-Medieval date (c. 1400-c. 1600).
The thimble has thin walls and a domed crown. Its walls are almost vertical but flare outwards very slightly from the top. The outside base of the walls is indented with initials: HO - ??ER- TE-. Above these letters there are seven circumferential lines of circular indentations which are interrupted by a plain zone indented with a heart pierced by an arrow. Two minor circumferential ribs form a junction between the walls and crown. There is a cross or flower-shaped pattern formed of circular indentations covering the crown.
The surface of the metal is a reddish brown colour and some areas have a mid-green patina and green copper-alloy corrosion products.
Height: 18.6mm; diameter: 16.4mm; Thickness: 0.7mm. Weight: 4.65g.
Sewing rings are seldom decorated and neither are the larger domed type thimbles of the kind designed for heavy duty. Light thimbles, however, are different. The earliest have no rim or decoration except possibly for an incised line running around the base, but from the 15th century onwards thimbles may be found with fancy designs, or with occasional symbol or message or endearment. The decoration of thimbles reached its peak during the 16th century when quantities of decorated thimble were imported from Nuremberg (Holmes: Finds Research Group 700-1700, Datasheet 9, page 2).
A sheet copper-alloy thimble of Medieval to post-Medieval date (c. 1400-c. 1600).
The thimble has thin walls and a domed crown. Its walls are almost vertical but flare outwards very slightly from the top. The outside base of the walls is indented with initials: HO - ??ER- TE-. Above these letters there are seven circumferential lines of circular indentations which are interrupted by a plain zone indented with a heart pierced by an arrow. Two minor circumferential ribs form a junction between the walls and crown. There is a cross or flower-shaped pattern formed of circular indentations covering the crown.
The surface of the metal is a reddish brown colour and some areas have a mid-green patina and green copper-alloy corrosion products.
Height: 18.6mm; diameter: 16.4mm; Thickness: 0.7mm. Weight: 4.65g.
Sewing rings are seldom decorated and neither are the larger domed type thimbles of the kind designed for heavy duty. Light thimbles, however, are different. The earliest have no rim or decoration except possibly for an incised line running around the base, but from the 15th century onwards thimbles may be found with fancy designs, or with occasional symbol or message or endearment. The decoration of thimbles reached its peak during the 16th century when quantities of decorated thimble were imported from Nuremberg (Holmes: Finds Research Group 700-1700, Datasheet 9, page 2).
A RDF representation of IOW-AA5C90
2010-08-17T16:07:53+01:00
2011-04-25T18:16:00+01:00
IOW-AA5C90
IOW-AA5C90
GB
en-GB
The Trustees of the British Museum
The Trustees of the British Museum
1
http://purl.org/NET/Claros/vocab#Thumbnail
Attribute as courtesy of the British Museum
A thumbnail image of IOW-AA5C90
Copper alloy
Primary material of object
Complete
16.4
Diameter
0.7
Thickness
16.4
Height
4.65
Weight
By Attribution 3.0
The period from for the object
Attribute as courtesy of the British Museum
A full resolution image of IOW-AA5C90
1400
1600
Method of manufacture