Rights Holder: Birmingham Museums Trust
CC License:
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Unique ID: WMID-2CA0E7
Object type certainty: Certain
Workflow
status: Awaiting validation
An incomplete cast copper alloy rowel spur, of Late Medieval to Early Post Medieval dating (15th to 17th Centuries AD).
Approximately 25% of the rowel spur is present, consisting of the rowel box and the rowel. The arms are missing, presumably lost in antiquity.
The rowel is a five pointed star shape, with the spokes having a lozenge shaped cross section, due to the edges being bevelled. The rowel is still held in position between the arms of the rowel box. The rowel box is complete, consisting of two arms and an iron axis bar. The iron axis bar is located in the centre of the rowel and is responsible for holding the rowel in position between the arms of the rowel box. Each arm is sub rectangular in plan, with a D shaped section. Two decorative vertical ridges are present, one at the junction between the two arms and one is located two thirds of the way down the length of the arm, close to the rowel. An ovoid (egg shaped) neck is present, which would have joined the rowel box to the arms of the spur.
The rowel spur fragment measures 49.0 mm in length, 9.7 mm thick and 29.3 mm wide. The rowel has a diameter of 30.7 mm. It weighs 20.2 g.
The rowel spur is a mid brown colour, with an even surface patina. Abrasion, caused by movement whilst within the plough soil, has resulted in a loss of some of the original surface detail.
Rowel spurs of this style are considered to be Late Medieval to Early Post Medieval in dating (15th to 17th Centuries AD).
Class: rowel
Subsequent action after recording: Returned to finder
Broad period: POST MEDIEVAL
Period from: MEDIEVAL
Period to: POST MEDIEVAL
Date from: Circa AD 1400
Date to: Circa AD 1600
Quantity: 1
Length: 49 mm
Width: 29.3 mm
Thickness: 9.7 mm
Weight: 20.2 g
Date(s) of discovery: Wednesday 14th August 2013
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4 Figure: SP1794
Four figure Latitude: 52.54359174
Four figure longitude: -1.75075962
1:25K map: SP1794
1:10K map: SP19SE
Grid reference source: From finder
Unmasked grid reference accurate to a 1 metre square.
No references cited so far.