BROOCH

An incomplete Early Medieval cast copper-alloy and gilded brooch. The brooch consists of the head-plate, the upper bow and the upper portion of the expanded sub-triangular foot of a small square-headed brooch of the early Anglo-Saxon period, c. 6th century AD. The head-plate is complete and is oriented vertically rather than horizontally as in most examples, with a small inner gilded panel and an outer frame which is gilded around the outer edge. The base of the upper bow connects to the lower edge of the inner panel. The bow has a broad central ridge which is gilded vertically along each side where it connects to the inner panel and has a recessed elongated oval decoration flanking the central ridge, which is also gilded. The inner panel is positioned immediately above the bow. It is unclear what the decoration is within the inner panel, but seems to be comprised of at least three vertical raised lines with texturing decoration. Below the bow, the upper segment of the expanding footplate is intact; the fragment is roughly circular, but is missing all of its perimeter edging and decoration and instead the central raised lozenge-shaped decoration is clearly visible, with a central lozenge-shaped pellet. All elements of the outer face of the brooch are still thickly gilded, whereas the reverse face is plain and undecorated. The sub-rectangular protruding hinge pin mechanism is intact on the reverse of the brooch head with a portion of what appears to be an iron axial pin, with associated iron corrosion to either side of the hinge mechanism; below in the area corresponding to the expanding foot a portion of the narrow catchplate remains. The reverse segments of the head and foot are flat, whereas the central bow is lightly curved in profile. The remains of the brooch measure 24.28 mm long, 11.4 mm wide (at head), 2.79 mm thick (at centre); 7.34 mm thick (at head with hinge mechanism); 4.24 mm thick (at expanding foot with catchplate fragment); it weighs 2.73 grams. Cf. Macgregor and Bolick 1993, p. 122-123, esp. no. 14.4-14.7.