EARLY MEDIEVAL BROOCH

450

Anglo-Saxon cast copper alloy button brooch with a gilt surface. This brooch is an example of Avent and Evison Class Aii, and is likely to be a poor copy of an Ai button brooch. Button brooches are circular in shape and resemble miniature saucer brooches, although the relationship between these two brooch classes is not clear. The brooch is in good condition, however is slightly worn on the raised areas of decoration, and the edge of the brooch is worn where most of the upturned rim has been broken off. It is 17mm in diameter and 14mm wide (the brooch is not completely rounded due to damage and wear), it is 2mm thick and the weight is unknown. The bright yellow gilt survives on the majority of the face of the brooch. The upper face is decorated with a face-mask motif, which is comprised of 7 different elements. There is a pointed, but slightly rounded, helmet with slightly upturned ends. A curved eyebrow unit with upturned ends is situated immediately below the helmet. A narrow nose that flares out at the nostrils is attached to the centre of the eyebrow element. The eyes are uneven, with the right being narrow and angular, while the eye on the left is larger and more round. There are no eye-rings used on this brooch. The cheeks fill the gaps left under the eyes, with the left cheek being smaller and narrower than the right. There is an open, angular mouth comprised of two bars of the same length, which curve slightly upwards where they meet at the ends. It is possible that the upper bar from the mouth was meant to represent a moustache. There is further decoration surrounding the face-mask, which is comprised of a decorative border with a ring of beading situated directly around the face mask. The remainder of the area on the border is plain and undecorated. The reverse of the brooch has the remains of a pin lug and a catchplate, which are extremely worn making it impossible to distinguish between the two. The pin was positioned across the face, from 270 degrees to 90 degrees; these angles correspond to the face of the brooch as opposed to the reverse so they are comparable with the measurements from Avent and Evison’s research. The pin is missing from the reverse, and there is no trace of iron corrosion to imply the presence of a corroded iron pin. Button brooches sometimes had a copper alloy pin, however this is unusual. Due to the condition of the pin lug and catchplate, it is possible that the pin may have been lost prior to deposition.