BROOCH

Roman copper alloy brooch, probably of T-shaped, Trumpet or allied type and of 1^st or 2^nd century AD date

The brooch is fragmentary missing both the head and foot (with a surviving length of 38.5mm, a surviving depth of 14.1mm and a weight of 7.2g). There are groves on the rear of the top of the bow to accommodate the missing pin and axis bar, suggesting the brooch employed a hinge mechanism. It is possible that wings may have been lost either side of the top of the bow. The upper-bow is of D-shaped section (with a width at the head of 9.0mm and a thickness of 4.5mm) with concave sides to the mid-bow. The surface detail of the bow has been lost because of heavy corrosion and pitting. The mid-bow had side knops above a central moulding but the detail is now lost. The leg is of D-shaped section with straight sides converging towards the break above the missing foot. There is now no trace of the catch-plate on the rear of the leg. The surface has a dark green-brown corrosion.

The fragmentary and corroded state of the brooch makes typological identification difficult. It is possible that the bow has lost its wings from a T-shaped type or the plate head from a Trumpet-headed type. It is also possible that the grooves on the rear of the bow may result of a later repair to the brooch.