AMPULLA

A lead-alloy pilgrims' ampulla, dating from the Late Medieval period.

The vessel has a circular body which extends upwards into a parallel-sided neck. This neck has been folded over (probably deliberately), so that its top now reaches halfway down the back of the body. The ends have also been repeatedly bitten-there are numerous bite marks around the rim-in order to prevent the water from escaping. At the junction between the neck and the body, there were originally two lug handles, one located on either side. Little remains of one of these handles, and that which does survive is poorly cast, the lead having run into the central gap, filling the space. Both sides of the body are decorated. On one side there is a relief-moulded Lombardic letter 'T', crowned, set over a background of cross-hatched ridges, surrounded by a circular rim. In addition, a band filled with oblique ridges extends around the angled outer edge of the body, crossing the vessel at the point where the neck and body meet. The back of the body is in the form of a scallop shell decorated with deeply moulded ridges and grooves.

Dimensions: 38.2mm high, 32.9mm wide, 15mm thick. Weight: 51.49g.

Similar ampullae, bearing a similar crowned letter 'T', are recorded on the PAS database (see LIN-25E422, HAMP-204F64, LANCUM-521C00, LANCUM-ED91E5 and LANCUM-77A960). The presence of this letter strongly suggests that such pieces originate from the Canterbury shrine of Thomas Becket.