SLEEVE CLASP

An unfinished pair of complete copper-alloy early medieval/early Anglo-Saxon wrist clasps. This is an extremely unusual discovery as the clasp-halves are attached to one another as cast.

The clasp-halves appear to have been made in a two-piece mould with the metal poured in above the catch-element of the catch-piece. The pair sit at c 70 degree angle to each other. One of the lateral terminals and the terminals of the central bars of each clasp are almost touching and are joined by casting sprues. The pair is also attached to each other via a rough thin piece of metal in between. This may have been the accidental product of mis-casting and possibly why the clasps were discarded without being finished.

They are both of Hines Form B12 (Hines 1993, 46-7), as each clasp is formed of a T-shaped bar and would have been sewn to the garment via open lugs. The pair was presumably cast together with the intention of being worn together when finished and consists of a hook-piece and a catch-piece. The hook-piece has a small rectangular depression on the front edge of the bar, which would have been pierced to form the hook-element and the catch-piece has a hook in the same position projecting from its reverse, which would have functioned as the catch-element. The hook-piece measures 39.95mm in length, 22.23mm in width and is 3.74mm thick and the catch-piece measures 37.83mm in length, 25.21mm in width and is 3.66mm thick.

The terminals of both of the clasp-halves have unfinished attachment lugs, on the central arm these unusually take the form of an opposing pair of D-shaped protrusions either side of the terminal and on the rear edge of the lateral arms these are single D-shaped protrusions. All of the unfinished lugs have small circular depressions in their centres on both sides, intended as a guide for piercing to form the finished lug.

Both clasps have low D-shaped cross-sections, with rounded front faces which are decorated. They have plain square panels at their centres and at each terminal and there are moulded transverse ridges across the bar between these. The back faces of both clasps are flat and undecorated.

Similar examples of Hines Form B12, also T-shaped, have been recorded on the PAS database from Suffolk, SF-A57D84 and Norfolk, NMS-1EE325. Their T-shaped form is strongly reminiscent of those of Hines B11. Form B12 clasps of T-shaped form appear to concentrate in and around East Anglia and are c 6th century in date (ibid). This discovery gives a rare insight into how these wrist clasps were produced. Although there are other examples of individual unfinished clasps, for example a single unfinished Form B12 from Norfolk Quidenham (see NMS-1EE325), and a Form B20 from Wortham, Suffolk (see SF-15d384), this is the only known example of multiple clasps cast together.

Length: 52.20mm, width: 37.78mm, thickness: 8.14mm, weight: 18.05g