POST MEDIEVAL CLOTH SEAL

1677

An incomplete lead cloth seal of Post-Medieval date. One incomplete half of a two-part seal survives, the remainder now missing due to old breaks. It is flat, disc shaped in form with an integral rivet at the centre of the back face, missing its connecting strip due to old breaks. The front face of the surviving disc carries a heraldic device comprising an ornate shield with a ridged and cross-hatched bend. Above the shield can be seen []S lis S[], and below is the date 16 (quatrefoil) 77, all within the remains of a laureate(?) border. The back face is undecorated but the centre of the integral rivet contains traces of a second shield or heraldic motif that is now unidentifiable due to the preservation of the object. It measures 33.55mm in length, 39.23mm in width, 3.74mm in thickness and 22.33g in weight.This is an incomplete two part cloth seal of Post-Medieval date. The heraldic device is the arms of Strasbourg (France) and a near identical example is recorded from the British Museum (Egan, 1995: p. 104, no. 305). It is suggested that the British Museum example is probably for a heavy grade cloth given its size, perhaps for linens, bays, says or tapestry. The current example is dated to 1677 AD.