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CLOTH SEAL
Unique ID: SOM-4B013F
Object type certainty: Certain
Workflow
status: Awaiting validation 
An incomplete Post-Medieval lead cloth seal, probably dating to c. AD 1500 to 1800. The surviving part consists of one complete disc with its integral rivet and part of the connecting strip now broken at the end.
The rivet is stamped with a partial raised privy or merchant's mark, with a central longitudinal line flanked on its right by the letter G and on the left by another symbol. Below the line are the tops of a design possibly the remains of a pair of Xs. The remainder of the mark has been lost with the second, ring shaped, disc.
Disc 2 is stamped with the incuse initials NS but is otherwise plain.
The cloth seal measures 27.6 mm in length, 19.1mm in width, 3.4mm in thickness and weighs 4.80 g.
This was probably a cloth seal used by a weaver, dyer or searcher. The use of a privy or merchants mark suggests a broad late 16th to 18th century date. A number of comparable seals are published by Egan (1994: 181-183), although no exact parallels were found. The incuse letters are similar to an example seen on the database BH-7B7E36 although not identical.
Subsequent actions
Subsequent action after recording: Returned to finder
Chronology
Broad period: POST MEDIEVAL
Period from: POST MEDIEVAL
Period to: POST MEDIEVAL
Date from: Circa AD 1550
Date to: Circa AD 1800
Dimensions and weight
Quantity: 1
Length: 27.6 mm
Width: 19.1 mm
Thickness: 3.4 mm
Weight: 4.8 g
Discovery dates
Date(s) of discovery: Saturday 1st December 2018 - Friday 1st March 2019
Personal details
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Other reference numbers
Other reference: SCC Receipt 018335
Materials and construction
References cited
| Author | Publication Year | Title | Publication Place | Publisher | Pages | Reference | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Egan, G. | 1994 | Lead cloth seals and related items in the British Museum | London | Department of Medieval and Later Antiquities, British Museum |
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Timeline of associated dates
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