Rights Holder: The Portable Antiquities Scheme
CC License: 
Image use policy
Our images can be used under a CC BY attribution licence (unless stated otherwise).
PEN
Unique ID: PUBLIC-6CCCAC
Object type certainty: Certain
Workflow
status: Awaiting validation 
A complete medieval bone pen dating 13th -15th century, slightly curved and with an uneven head. It has been sharpened at an angle to form a point, and it has been hollowed to contain ink for writing on parchment. There are slight wear marks on the shaft. A similar bone pen (slightly longer) can be seen in the Museum of London permanent collection (Item 11113), dated 13th - 15th century.
Dimensions: length: 65.34mm; diameter of the head: 5.83mm; diameter of the shaft: 3.70mm; weight: 0.70g.
Notes:
Nina Crummy (1988: 98, Fig.106, item 3637) suggests other possible uses, as a 'pen-holder' enabling reuse of broken quill points, as a 'pipette', as a measuring implement, or as a tool used in textile processing, possibly knitting.
Reference: Crummy, Nina, 1983, Colchester Archaeological Report 5: The post-Roman small finds from excavations in Colchester 1971-85
Arthur MacGregor (1985:125) writes: "In a discussion of this type of objects, Biek (in Hurst 1965) notes that they lack the split ends which give added flexibility and, perhaps, capillarity, to quill pens, but concludes that they could have been used as lining pens if loaded with viscous ink and held with the open side upwards, almost horizontally. An alternative function suggested by Biek was for scooping out or measuring quantities of softened oak galls for preparation with boiling water as ink, while other suggestions made elsewhere (in Moorhouse 1972) include pipettes for charging quill pens and economised for broken quills, the end of the quill being inserted into the hollow bone."
Reference: MacGregor, A., 1985 Bone, Antler, Ivory and Horn London : Croom Helm, 125
Subsequent actions
Subsequent action after recording: Returned to finder
Chronology
Broad period: MEDIEVAL
Period from: MEDIEVAL
Period to: MEDIEVAL
Date from: Circa AD 1200
Date to: Circa AD 1400
Dimensions and weight
Quantity: 1
Length: 65.34 mm
Weight: 0.7 g
Diameter: 5.83 mm
Discovery dates
Date(s) of discovery: Tuesday 25th October 2016
Personal details
This information is restricted for your access level.
Materials and construction
Primary material: Animal skeletal material
Manufacture method: Hand made
Completeness: Complete
Spatial metadata
Region: London (European Region)County or Unitary authority: Greater London Authority (Greater London Authority)
District: City and County of the City of London (London Borough)
Parish or ward: Dowgate (London Borough Ward)
Spatial coordinates
4 Figure: TQ3280
Four figure Latitude: 51.5035277
Four figure longitude: -0.09955492
1:25K map: TQ3280
1:10K map: TQ38SW
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 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crummy, N. | 1988 | Colchester Archaeological Report 5: The Post Roman Small Finds From Excavations in Colchester 1971-85 | Colchester | Colchester Archaeological Trust | 98 | 3637 | |
| MacGregor, A. | 1985 | Bone, Antler, Ivory and Horn | London | Croom Helm | 125 |
Similar objects
Find number: LON-A2F370
Object type: GAMING PIECE
Broadperiod: ROMAN
A complete Roman bone gaming counter dating from AD 50-410. The counter is undecorated except for a small central hole on one side, …
Workflow: Awaiting validation
Find number: LON-2EFB58
Object type: GAMING PIECE
Broadperiod: ROMAN
Complete Roman bone gaming counter, undecorated except for a small central hole on one side possibly from a lathe. The edges are bevelled outw…
Workflow: Awaiting validation
Find number: LON-0307CC
Object type: TUNING PEG
Broadperiod: MEDIEVAL
A Medieval bone tuning peg dating froom the 13th-15th century. The tuning peg has a circular sectioned shank with a perforation at one end, t…
Workflow: Awaiting validation
Timeline of associated dates
About Us
About our Site
Find us
The British Museum, Great Russell Street, London WC1B 3DG.
T: +44(0) 20 73238618