Rights Holder: Suffolk County Council Archaeology Service
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BROOCH
Unique ID: SF-05DF65
Object type certainty: Certain
Workflow
status: Awaiting validation 
Copper alloy brooch fragment, P-shaped or proto-Crossbow type. Upper half only, missing pin; bow very bent; some surface damage. Traces of white metal coating on the spring case and minute traces of possible gilding on the bow. The 14 coil spring has a low chord and is housed within an open backed spring case with end plates holding the axis bar. At the top is a small knob with flattened back; below this a notched transverse groove and a lighter incised transverse line below. The bow/spring case junction is marked by angled ribs. The arched bow is flat backed with slightly convex sides meeting at a centre ridge. There is a small knob projecting on each side just below the spring case junction and a damaged transverse rib above a narrower bow section at the break. Width 25.5mm, surviving length 36mm. This type is found in East Anglia at Brancaster (Mackreth in EAA 23, 1985, App 4 Fig 86, no.9)and at Caister by Yarmouth (Butcher in Darling with Gurney 1993, EAA 60, Fig 39 no.4) - both authors suggest a later 2nd to first half of 3rd century date - and is also relatively common on Hadrains Wall.
Class: proto crossbow
Subsequent actions
Subsequent action after recording: Returned to finder
Chronology
Broad period: ROMAN
Period from: ROMAN
Period to: ROMAN
Date from: Circa AD 175
Date to: Circa AD 250
Dimensions and weight
Quantity: 1
Length: 36 mm
Width: 25.5 mm
Weight: 12.06 g
Discovery dates
Date(s) of discovery: Friday 1st November 2002
Personal details
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Other reference numbers
Other reference: Finder ref W02 2
Materials and construction
Spatial metadata
Region: Eastern (European Region)County or Unitary authority: Suffolk (County)
District: Suffolk Coastal (District)
To be known as: Wenhaston, Suffolk
Spatial coordinates
Unmasked grid reference accurate to a 10 metre square.
References cited
No references cited so far.
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Timeline of associated dates
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