MEDIEVAL PURSE

1250

A complete copper-alloy purse hanger or arched pendent mount of Medieval date.It is pentagonal in section with a flat back face. There are two arches with a central with a tear-drop shaped lobe projecting downwards. The arms are rectangular with a transverse collar and semi-circular terminal knobs. The front face of the arches has been decoratively bevelled. The front face of the lobe is decorated with diagonal criss-cross grooves. The back face is undecorated.This purse measures 49.73mm in length, 13.73mm in width, 3.53mm in thickness, 5.34g in weight. Similar arched pendant mounts are known from London. They swung freely, held at each end, usually by a bar mount, to a girdle. They were used to attach purses or knives to the belt. They were identified by analogy with examples represented in mid-13th century French sculpture (Egan and Pritchard 1991, 219-224). There are similar examples recorded on the PAS database (WILT-B705C0), (CAMHER-879EC6), (SUSS-A55EB7).