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BROOCH
Unique ID: KENT-B2F382
Object type certainty: Certain
Workflow
status: Published 
An incomplete cast gilded silver 'keystone' disc brooch dating to the early medieval period.
Description: Roughly two thirds of the brooch remain, with most of the rim and the lower section of the brooch now missing. The brooch has four integrally-cast cells, comprising three rectangular cells spaced evenly around a central circular cell. The lower two cells are empty, with the break across the lower section of the brooch encompassing the lower part of the two cells. The remaining perimeter cell and central circular cell retain polished garnet inlays. The central garnet is severely cracked. It was not possible to observe backing cells behind the surviving garnet inlays. The perimeter cells alternate with stylised zoomorphic motifs in Salin's style I, the lowermost lost to the missing section of the brooch. The surviving part of the rim is raised, with a single line of punched triangles. The back of the brooch is plain and retains part of the pin lug, now broken across its length. The breaks are relatively jagged. The brooch is evenly gilded on the front save for the very outer rim which has been left silver.
Measurements: Length: 17.42 mm, Width: 15.33 mm, Thickness: 5.21 mm incl. pin lug, 3.10 mm without and weight: 2.79 g
Discussion: This brooch fits with Avent's (1975) Class 1.1 of keystone disc brooch. The rim has direct parallels in Avent's corpus nos. 6 and 13. The zoomorphic motifs and slight beading also resemble no.13, from Stowting, grave 30. Hines and Bayliss' (2013) chronological framework suggests a date in the mid sixth century, approximately 525-575.
Class: Avent Class 1.1
Subsequent actions
Subsequent action after recording: Returned to finder
Treasure details
Treasure case tracking number: 2017T1008
Chronology
Broad period: EARLY MEDIEVAL
Subperiod from: Early
Period from: EARLY MEDIEVAL
Subperiod to: Early
Period to: EARLY MEDIEVAL
Ascribed Culture:
Anglo-Saxon style
Date from: Circa AD 525
Date to: Circa AD 575
Dimensions and weight
Quantity: 1
Length: 17.42 mm
Width: 15.33 mm
Thickness: 5.21 mm
Weight: 2.79 g
Discovery dates
Date(s) of discovery: Friday 13th October 2017
Personal details
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Other reference numbers
Treasure case number: 2017T1008
Materials and construction
Primary material: Silver
Manufacture method: Cast
Decoration style: Zoomorphic
Completeness: Incomplete
Surface Treatment: Gilded
Spatial metadata
Region: South East (European Region)County or Unitary authority: Kent (County)
District: Dover (District)
To be known as: Nonington
Spatial coordinates
Grid reference source: GPS (from the finder)
Unmasked grid reference accurate to a 1 metre square.
References cited
| Author | Publication Year | Title | Publication Place | Publisher | Pages | Reference | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avent, R. | 1975 | Anglo-Saxon Garnet Inlaid Disc and Composite Brooches. | Oxford | British Archaeological Reports | |||
| Hines, J. and Bayliss, A. eds. | 2013 | Anglo-Saxon Graves and Grave Goods of the 6th and 7th Centuries AD: A Chronological Framework | London | The Society for Medieval Archaeology |
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