BUTTON

Treasure case 2017 T137: Declared Treasure and donated to museum by finder.

Description: A silver button with incised decoration. The button is bi-convex with a domed front and back. On the front is a central raised pellet and around this an incised design of a six leaved flower, each leaf made of three lobes with a central stem. Near the edge of the front is an incised border formed of a pair of concentric circles with regularly spaced pairs of diagonal lines running between them.

The back has two circular blow holes flanking a loop. The loop is formed of a strip of D-shaped sectioned wire bent over on itself and the ends soldered to the back of the button. There is a visible line of solder around the back where the front and back were attached.

Dimensions: The button is 11.24mm in diameter, 7.5mm thick excluding the loop 14.1mm including it and weighs 1.25 grams.

Discussion: The piece is similar in broad form and design to hollow buttons and cufflinks with incised flowers such as the cufflink2011 T468 (Burnett 2011), dated c. 1675-1725, and the button2008 T689 (Darch 2008) dated to the 17th century. Unlike those examples which do not have a pimple the presence of a central pimple suggests this is example dates to the 17th century rather than later, similar to Egan (2005: 49) no.204, from a context dated c.1675-1700 and Bailey (2004:39) no.s 8.37 and 8.38 dated to the 17th century. The bi-convex form suggests a button rather than a cufflink

The button appears to consist of over 10% precious metal and be over 300 years old at the time of finding and as such qualifies as potential Treasure under the stipulations of the Treasure Act 1996.

Laura Burnett

Finds Liaison Officer for Somerset

May 2017

Bibliography

Bailey, G., 2004 Buttons and Fasteners 500BC - AD1840 Essex : Greenlight Publishing

Burnett, L (2011) "SOM-BF3954: A POST MEDIEVAL CUFF LINK" Web page available at: https://finds.org.uk/database/artefacts/record/id/457072 [Accessed: 22 May 2017 16:53:28]

Darch, E (2008) "NMS-A9CC55: A POST MEDIEVAL BUTTON" Web page available at: https://finds.org.uk/database/artefacts/record/id/239148 [Accessed: 22 May 2017 16:52:30]

Egan, G., 2005 Material Culture in London in an Age Of Transition: Tudor and Stuart period finds c.1450 - c.1700 from excavations at riverside sites in Southwark London : Museum of London Archaeology Service