VESSEL

A late medieval (c.1400-1500) cast copper-alloy integral vessel mount (handle lug) in the form of three-dimensional humanoid (female?) head from a late medieval hanging laver (bowl to hold water).

Description: The mount is in the form of a humanoid bust with a wide angular face with rounded edges and narrowing towards the back of the head (which would have faced the inside of the vessel). The general shape of the head and line of the hair is cast in relief with the details of the hair, eys nose and mouth being chased or incised in. The nose is subtley executed with two lines between the two eyes. The eyes themselves are crudley executed with heavily lidded eyes and pointed oval in shape. The mouth is triangular crudely executed. The hair is far more clearly executed and represted by a number of incised lines flicking upwards on the side of the head and onto the top of the head with a line defining a clear central parting.

The neck is wide and the base/shoulders of the bust is only slightly wider than the head. The reverse base/shoulders is the attachment points onto the vessel for the mount and is concave on the reverse. The reverse is crudely cast with chisleing likely enabling the application solder to attach the mount to a vessel. The concave attachment does also extend slightly up the back of the neck. On the back of the head is a circular indentation likely for the attachment for a loop handle attached between this and a similar mount attached opposite.

Measurements: 47.7mm high, 29mm wide, 22mm thick and 110.52g in weight.

Discussion: This kind of mount belongs to a group of copper-alloy vessel with decorative handle mounts and spouts produced predominantly in the 15th century (although perhaps as early as the late 14th) in North-East France and Belgium (Flanders). With a complete example held in the British Museum, accession number 1956,0702.1 and several others illustrated by Begrundet von Otto von Falke and Erich Meyer (2000). A number of similar examples have been reported to the PAS although the type remains relatively scarce. For particularly close examples See:GLO-78CE0A, SWYOR-271491, BH-CC7C87, BH-6D9171, ESS-A02895, SF-9A1617 and LIN-5224B2.