Find Spot record 9013/48 - Eleventh Century Copper Strap Fitting, Chester

A cast copper alloy strap distributor / harness link of early medieval / Anglo-Scandinavian date (eleventh century AD) was found by metal detector at an unspecified location in Chester. The distributor is incomplete consisting of the central boss two incomplete arms, the other two arms are lost being broken at the junction with the central boss. The central plate or boss is domed and the side links taper and expand from the edge. The two surviving side arms are both broken at the point where the looped terminal starts, all the arms are D-shaped in cross section. The reverse face is flat and undecorated; the area behind the domed boss is concave and deeply recessed. The artefact is a brass colour having been cleaned by the finder; some surface patina survives in the concave area on the rear. It is possible that this artefact may have been miss cast or damaged in a fire, one of the arms has been heavily melted and all that survives is a globular mass of metal on one edge. It is also possible (although in the opinion of the curator) that this may be the remains of a casting jet. Similar 4 way distributors can be seen in Williams ‘Anglo Scandinavian Horse Harness Fittings’ (FRG Datasheet 39) dated to the eleventh century.

<1> Portable Antiquities Scheme, Various, Portable Antiquities Data Import (Digital Archive). SCH5212.