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CLOTH SEAL
Unique ID: IOW-6C2988
Object type certainty: Certain
Workflow
status: Awaiting validation 
A possibly complete post-Medieval lead-alloy cloth seal. (c. 1500-c. 1625).
This is probably a two-part seal. The front face has a stamped crowned portcullis with an illegible inscription around. There is possibly a numeral or letter under the portcullis. Part of the inscription is missing due to a break. The other face is flat with an integral cruciform head. An irregular shaped tab joins the two discs.
This seal has a buff patina.
Length: 28.0mm; width: 18.9mm; thickness: 7.4mm. Weight: 13.29g.
The portcullis was "the main design for alnage seals in the late Tudor period... and continued in use into the early seventeenth century" (Egan 1995: 9). Alnage seals indicated the cloth had been checked for quality by a Crown official and that the subsidy (tax) had been paid.
Subsequent actions
Current location of find: Finder
Subsequent action after recording: Returned to finder
Chronology
Broad period: POST MEDIEVAL
Subperiod from: Early
Period from: POST MEDIEVAL
Subperiod to: Early
Period to: POST MEDIEVAL
Date from: Circa AD 1500
Date to: Circa AD 1625
Dimensions and weight
Quantity: 1
Length: 28 mm
Width: 18.9 mm
Thickness: 7.4 mm
Weight: 13.29 g
Discovery dates
Date(s) of discovery: Wednesday 2nd September 2015 - Wednesday 2nd September 2015
Personal details
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Other reference numbers
Other reference: IOW2015-5-120
Materials and construction
Spatial metadata
Region: South East (European Region)County or Unitary authority: Isle of Wight (Unitary Authority)
District: Isle of Wight (Unitary Authority)
To be known as: Isle of Wight
Spatial coordinates
Grid reference source: Generated from computer mapping software
Unmasked grid reference accurate to a 1 metre square.
References cited
| Author | Publication Year | Title | Publication Place | Publisher | Pages | Reference | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Egan, G. | 1994 | Lead cloth seals and related items in the British Museum | London | Department of Medieval and Later Antiquities, British Museum | 9 |
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Timeline of associated dates
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