POST MEDIEVAL MOUNT

1630

Fragment of silver decorative mount, broken top and bottom. The outline has the superficial resemblance to spoon handle terminals, but the figurative decoration is the wrong way round, and the cast is hollow on the reverse and clearly intended to sit against a flat surface.The mount has a tapering form, widest the base of the main motif. This has the form of a crowned reliquary bust of a female saint with long hair, facing forward. The background is filled with asymmetrical vegetal scrolls, against a rusticated surface. Below the bust is a smaller triangular panel filled with what appears to be a winged figure, perhaps a supported angel with cherub-like features. Both figures are cast and raised, and the crowned 'Mary' is flanked by capital initials S and B (Saints Barbara, Bridget, Bertha, or ownership initials)The maximum length is 29.5mm; the maximum width 18.3mm; maximum thickness 0.5mm; weight 3.73g. The mount, which has an unevenly polished surface, has not undergone any cleaning or conservation.The style of the lettering and decoration indicate that it probably dates to the first half of the seventeenth century. The cherub is reminiscent of some 1630s silver and wall-painting.A clue to function lies in the fragmentary lug at the base of the 'angel'. This appears to be too small for all but the finest of suspension chains, and appears most likely to have held a fastening rivet. This suggests that the mount may once have been fastened to a casket as part of a decorative hinge, or to adorn a cover on a small bible or prayer book, the symbolism pointing to a religious nature (Catholic Stuart silver). The figure does not appear to be heraldic (i.e. a maidenhead crest, combined with the owner's initials), and does not work for Brereton or Booth, two Cheshire / Flintshire families of the period. If not a specific saint, it could represent the Virgin Mary.Amgueddfa Cymru/Flintshire Museum Service is interested in acquiring this item.