DURHAM

(1) Middleton St George (DUR-6579B7) ( fig. 1).Footnote ¹³ A copper-alloy figurine in the form of a seated naked figure, facing forwards, 100.6 mm long, 32.8 mm wide, 18.2 mm thick and weighing 72.1 g. The object is reasonably well preserved, although there are some breaks and the worn facial features are difficult to make out. The metal is dark green in colour with areas of corrosion, especially around the object that the figure carries in its left hand. The nose is the most visible feature on the round, clean-shaven face. To the back and right side of the head are traces of a distinctive hairstyle or headgear, perhaps a petasos, but these are too worn to describe closely. Some modelling of musculature remains visible on the chest and buttocks. The right hand rests on the right knee, while the left arm holds a rod, perhaps part of a caduceus, against the body from hip to shoulder. The knees are splayed apart, but the feet of the figure converge. Traces of attachment are missing, but the figure must have been seated on a now missing support.

FIG. 1.

Middleton St George, figurine of seated naked figure, possibly Mercury (No. 1). Scale 1:1. (Photo: F. McIntosh; © F. McIntosh)

The tentative identification of the attributes indicates that this is a seated figure of Mercury, a rare pose in which to portray the god but met occasionally in various media in Britain.Footnote ¹⁴ Further seated small-scale representations of Mercury in copper alloy are also known from other provinces.Footnote ¹⁵

(2) Piercebridge (FAPJW-D8ABE4) ( fig. 2).Footnote ¹⁶ A small copper-alloy figurine of a naked Cupid, 55 mm tall and c. 24 mm wide from arm to arm, with a maximum thickness of 13 mm including wings, generally well preserved but missing its lower right leg and part of the left foot. The facial features are well-rendered, with eyes, nose, mouth and fingers clearly delineated. The shoulder-length hair falls in curls which frame the face's chubby cheeks. A distinctive topknot of hair rises from his forehead. His right arm is extended above his head and the hand holds a short jar with everted rim. The left arm is held closer to the body and bent at the elbow; the left hand holds a discoidal object, perhaps a dish or patera. Stubby wings of unequal size project from the base of the neck. Three diagonal lines are visible on the right wing, indicating feathers. Cupid's torso is sleek though the muscles of the leg and buttocks are more strongly defined. The straight left leg bears the weight of the figure, while the right is bent, with a corresponding tilt of the hips. With its outstretched right arm the figure suggests movement, if not quite the running or flight represented in some poses of the demigod.Footnote ¹⁷

FIG. 2.

Piercebridge, figurine of naked Cupid (No. 2). Scale 1:1. (Photo: P. Walton; © P. Walton)

This is one of two Cupid figurines from Piercebridge, the other being similar but more clearly depicted taking flight (NCL-2C40A4). The associated assemblage in the river Tees suggests that they derive from a votive deposit.Footnote ¹⁸ Many other Cupids from the province have similar poses, with one arm raised and the other lowered, for example Kirby Thore, Corbridge and Moresby.Footnote ¹⁹ The attributes of vase and plate for the Piercebridge example may suggest service at a symposium; these are not directly paralleled, but diverse objects are associated with Cupid figurines (grapes, bird, torch, and a pomegranate as well as vessels and weapons).Footnote ²⁰ The findspots of examples reported to the PAS, including Piercebridge and others (e.g. CAM-E31F28; BERK-536215; BERK-EA42E1), support Durham's observation that their distribution is widespread across the province.Footnote ²¹

NORTH YORKSHIRE

(3) Kirkby Fleetham (SWYOR-862875) ( fig. 3).Footnote ²² A copper-alloy figurine of a standing goat with head and neck turned to the right, 60.5 mm long, 66.3 mm high, 21.7 mm thick and weighing 119.8 g. The tips of the horns, tail, rear legs and the right forelimb are all missing and some extensive corrosion patches are visible; elsewhere a reddish-brown patina survives. The body, short limbs and head of the stocky animal are powerful and well modelled. Facial features too are clearly rendered, as are the strands of the long shaggy coat and ‘beard’. There is a very small cup-shaped depression in the centre of the goat's back of uncertain function, a feature not otherwise observed on such figurines. Goats are one of the most frequently attested animals rendered as figurines, 25 instances being recorded in Durham's corpus.Footnote ²³ They are widely distributed in the province, reflecting the frequency of representations of the god Mercury with whom they are sometimes associated in figure groups.Footnote ²⁴ Several similarly naturalistic figurines representing goats are documented, though this example is larger than most.Footnote ²⁵

FIG. 3.

Kirkby Fleetham, figurine of a standing goat (No. 3). Scale 1:1. (Photo: A. Downes; © A. Downes)

(4) Sessay (SWYOR-91A033) ( fig. 4).Footnote ²⁶ An incomplete copper-alloy hinged baldric fitting of third-century a.d. date, 33.7 mm long, 22.3 mm wide and 4.9 mm thick. The openwork plate is pierced by triangular and semi-circular perforations which leave a network of spokes connecting the edges of the plate. At the unbroken end is a circular hole, perhaps for a rivet, which is filled with copper-alloy of a different patination to that of the plate, and a hinge with three loops which hold the corroded remains of the axis bar. Similar baldric fittings are known from Aldborough, N Yorks., Silchester, Hants., and Ashwell, Herts. (BH-D36487).Footnote ²⁷ Belt fittings and buckles of the early to mid-imperial period are widely distributed across eastern and southern England.Footnote ²⁸

FIG. 4.

Sessay, baldric fitting of third-century a.d. date (No. 4). Scale 1:1. (Photo: A. Downes; © A. Downes)

EAST RIDING OF YORKSHIRE

(5) Near Market Weighton (YORYM-5589D6) ( fig. 5).Footnote ²⁹ Two complete and near identical headstud brooches and an associated chain, all made of copper alloy. One brooch is 63.5 mm long, and 23.1 mm wide, 21 mm thick and weighs 19 g, the other has very similar dimensions. The brooches are very well preserved with only some limited surface pitting. Each has an integral D-sectioned head loop, short wings with three vertical ribs and a raised head stud with two separate cells of central dot and surrounding ring. The hinged pin survives intact and moves freely in both cases. The bow has raised edges creating a concave channel down its centre. Each brooch has a cylindrical foot-knob with two horizontal ribs and large catchplate.Footnote ³⁰ The copper-alloy chain, 270 mm long and weighing 19.8g, is formed from 59 links, which are smaller at the ends and larger closer to the centre.

FIG. 5.

Near Market Weighton, two headstud brooches and associated chain (No. 5). Scale 1:1. (Photo: L. Andrews-Wilson; © L. Andrews-Wilson and York Museums Trust)

Headstud brooches are very frequently attested in PAS records, 1,111 having been recorded between 1997 and June 2013, with a high concentration in this region, including 180 from East, 133 from North, 41 from South, and 33 from West Yorkshire. The significance of this particular instance lies in their association with the chain, presumably because they had been buried together in a structured deposit or grave.Footnote ³¹ The brooches may have been worn at the shoulders, linked by the chain suspended between them; while the chains found with other pairs of brooches are too short for this to have been likely, the greater length of the chain in this case would have made it possible.Footnote ³²

NORTH LINCOLNSHIRE

(6) Roxby cum Risby (NLM-10C624) ( fig. 6).Footnote ³³ A copper-alloy hollow-cast handle with a terminal in the form of a male lion's head. It is 39.4 mm long, 16.9 mm wide, 17.6 mm high (lion's head) and weighs 24.5 g. The lion's head, with jaws agape, is well modelled, with muzzle, teeth and eyes crisply rendered, and the strands of the thick mane clearly delineated. The narrower fluted handle terminates in a thicker collar with crenellated ornament. Behind the teeth is a round aperture 4 mm in diameter. Key handles of a similar size with similar lion-head terminals are widely distributed, but close parallels have not been found for this piece.Footnote ³⁴ The high quality of modelling, the naturalistic rendering of the lion's head, and the competent execution of decorative motifs make this comparable to some pieces of continental provenance.Footnote ³⁵

FIG. 6.

Roxby cum Risby, handle with lion's head terminal (No. 6). Scale 1:1. (Photo: M. Foreman; © M. Foreman and North Lincolnshire Museum)

LINCOLNSHIRE

(7) Wrawby ( fig. 7).Footnote ³⁶ An incomplete copper-alloy figurine of Mars as an armed standing figure. He wears a Corinthian helmet, the crest of which clearly shows the segments into which it is divided. Luxuriant hair emerges at either temple from beneath the helmet and the beard is uncommonly full. The god wears a muscled cuirass with tunic beneath, visible at the arms and the waist, and a kilt whose folds are sketchily rendered. Traces of a cloak may be visible on the left shoulder. His left arm is raised and his hand grasps a now missing object, almost certainly a spear. His right hand holds a sheathed sword, reversed, with its hilt, terminating in an elaborate pommel, in his hand and the tip of the blade at the right shoulder. The strapping on the scabbard is indicated by raised bands. The god's right leg is straight and his left bends at the knee. Greaves on the lower legs are clearly visible; the feet are missing.

FIG. 7.

Wrawby, figurine of Mars (No. 7). (Photo: A. Daubney; © A. Daubney)

The combination of straight right leg and left bent at the knee, which gives a pose of relaxed dynamism, is very common in the representation of the god. The iconography combines elements of two types, which are usually separated in representations of Mars in this medium. The bearded figure with spear and muscled cuirass is a type derived from the cult image in the temple of Mars Ultor, though the spear is here transposed from right to left hand. The sword is, however, a rare attribute of Mars and all other instances are of the god represented as a naked and armed youth who carries it, usually unsheathed, in his left rather than right hand.Footnote ³⁷

After Mercury and Hercules, Mars is the third most popular male deity in figurines from Britain; 47 examples are documented in Durham's corpus.Footnote ³⁸ The findspot of this figurine is at the north-eastern extremity of its distribution, which focuses on southern and eastern England.Footnote ³⁹

(8) Nettleton (LIN-25CC02) ( fig. 8).Footnote ⁴⁰ A near-complete copper-alloy figurine of Mercury, 81 mm long, 45 mm wide, 22 mm thick and weighing 72.7 g. The figure is naked except for a cloak draped over his left shoulder and arm. Mercury stands facing, with the right leg straight and the left bent at the knee, and the hips tilted. The figurine does not stand by itself, but there is no evidence for a now lost support. Mercury's head is turned slightly to his right. His facial features are worn with a strong brow ridge. The hair is curly and divided into two zones, set at a high angle to the head, a lower more luxuriant band and a cap-like coiffure on top of the head from which two wings project. The god's arms are over-long in proportion to the rest of the body. Both are extended forwards, the right holding a money-bag, but whatever was in the left, probably a caduceus, is now missing. His torso is slender but toned, though lacking detail except for the genitalia; the musculature of buttocks and legs is more strongly modelled.

FIG. 8.

Nettleton, figurine of Mercury (No. 8). Scale 1:1. (Photo: A. Daubney; © A. Daubney)

This common pose for the god is documented in many other examples from Britain and beyond. Mercury is the most frequently documented of all figurines in the province; Durham's corpus records 103 examples and other instances are also known from the PAS.Footnote ⁴¹ The findspot lies at the north-eastern extremity of the distribution of Mercury figurines; examples in northern Lincolnshire being rare.Footnote ⁴²

(9) Kirkby la Thorpe (LIN-E63C92) ( fig. 9).Footnote ⁴³ A Romano-British copper-alloy three-dimensional figurine, 87 mm long, in the form of a running stag, probably a red deer. One antler and the lower parts of the rear limbs are lost. In very good condition, the surface is smooth with a glossy mid-green/brown patina. A quite slender head sits on a thick neck; the slightly open mouth, eyes and nostrils being clearly rendered. The short pointed ears, depicted as recessed ovals, are swept back to complement the impression of forward motion. One antler is complete, the other is broken just above its base. The surviving antler is long and curves backwards, with five tines projecting from the main trunk. The body is smooth, giving a suggestion of muscle, and ends in a short tail. The curiously outsized fore legs extend forwards from the body; their lower parts are covered in shaggy fur and the cloven hooves are carefully detailed. The rear legs extend backwards to show the stag's momentum. Genitalia are rendered on the underside.

FIG. 9.

Kirkby la Thorpe, figurine of a running stag (No. 9). Scale 1:2. (Photo: A. Daubney; © A. Daubney)

This find adds to a small number of stag figurines from Roman Britain, including one possible PAS example from Gainsborough, Lincs. (NLM4353); a metal-detected find from Woodingdean, Sussex, carries a similarly impressive set of antlers.Footnote ⁴⁴ In one instance at least, the findspot — a temple outside the Balkerne gate at Colchester — suggests the use of stag figurines as votives.Footnote ⁴⁵ The proliferation of stags as well as other game in many media, including zoomorphic brooches, ceramics and glass as well as figurines, reveals the likely significance of hunting among the population of Roman Britain.Footnote ⁴⁶

(10) Caenby Corner (DENO-075128) ( fig. 10).Footnote ⁴⁷ A complete, though quite worn, copper-alloy figurine of a giant, 57.3 mm high, 44.9 mm at its widest, 14.8 mm thick and weighing 71.5 g. The transformation of the lower legs into serpents reveals its nature as an anguiped. The bearded face is upturned and coarse featured, especially its bulbous nose, beetling brows and knotted temples. A thick beard frames the face with a cap of abundant hair above, fringed by a thick rope-like band of hair with a possible topknot at the front; on the top of the head individual locks are rendered. The right arm extends to the right, slightly bent at the elbow, with palm raised, while the left arm is held closer to the body, the hand by the snake's head that emerges from behind the left leg. The object held close to the body in the left hand, curving around the lower arm and rising straight above the shoulder, is likely to be a branch. Giants on Jupiter columns are occasionally armed with club or sword, but this object does not resemble these.Footnote ⁴⁸

FIG. 10.

Caenby Corner, figurine of a giant (No. 10). Scale 1:1. (Photo: C. Burrill; © C. Burrill and Derby City Council)

The slight forward inclination of the torso accentuates the strongly defined musculature, its pectorals and abdominals on the front as well as the muscles of the back and buttocks. A tuft of hair seems to sprout from the base of the pectoral cleft. Below the genitals, fringed by pubic hair above, are short upper legs, also well muscled. From the back of each comes a serpent body which curls around the back of the figure and out from its side to left and right. Chevrons on both bodies render their scales in a stylised manner and each snake terminates in a crested head on which the surface decoration is rubbed smooth. The figurine may originally have been mounted, but there is no trace of attachment.

Representations of giants in this medium are rare.Footnote ⁴⁹ A larger, finer figurine without known provenance is held in the Getty collection.Footnote ⁵⁰ In the latter example the giant is more animated, its waist twisted and the snakes rearing, and it bears more finely rendered surface detail, for example the scales on its legs and whorls of hair on the torso. A hole in the base of one knee gives a point of attachment which is lacking from the Caenby giant.Footnote ⁵¹ The giant's pose, with head upturned, right arm extended and limbs contorted, recalls the death agonies on other representations of giants in Greco-Roman art, for example the Pergamon altar or Piazza Armerina mosaics, though a specific parallel to the object held in the left hand has not yet been found.Footnote ⁵²

Representations of anguiped giants in any media are rare in Roman Britain. Jupiter columns bearing images of giants ridden down, though not unknown in the province, are much more common in Germany and Gaul.Footnote ⁵³ In closer proximity to Caenby is a serpent-bodied monster ridden down by a mounted rider on a stone relief from Stragglethorpe, but it is a hybrid creature rather than a giant proper.Footnote ⁵⁴ Vanquished anguipeds are also met occasionally in other portable media, for example gems from Castle Collen and London.Footnote ⁵⁵ On analogy with these other representations the Caenby figurine may have formed part of a larger figural group, associated perhaps with a riding martial god of whom representations are widely distributed in Lincolnshire and East Anglia.Footnote ⁵⁶

(11) Normanton (SWYOR-1D8EA3) ( fig. 11).Footnote ⁵⁷ A copper-alloy object, with zoomorphic terminals, representing perhaps a goat and an eagle. The object is 58.8 mm long, 25.2 mm wide, 7.1 mm thick and weighs 19.9 g. The rod, lozenge-shaped in section, bifurcates into two arms of differing lengths. The shorter arm terminates in a figure of a bird, perhaps an eagle or other bird of prey. It is schematically rendered, with a hooked beak and hatching to represent the plumage on its wings. The longer arm terminates in the neck and head of a goat or similar animal. The horned creature is open-mouthed, with oversized eyes rendered as a punched ring and dot and two short downward curving horns on the back of its head. Both animals are facing in the same direction. No close parallel can be found; stirring rods often have zoomorphic terminals, but none of the examples documented by Kaufmann-Heinemann resemble the Normanton find and they are in any case smaller.Footnote ⁵⁸

FIG. 11.

Normanton, object of uncertain function with zoomorphic terminals (No. 11). Scale 1:1. (Photo: A. Downes; © A. Downes)

NOTTINGHAMSHIRE

(12) Carlton in Lindrick (DENO-A20E64) (fig. 12).Footnote ⁵⁹ A complete, but unfinished and crudely rendered, small copper-alloy figurine of a riding male figure, 46.5 mm high, 27.2 mm wide, 9.8 mm thick and weighing 14.8 g. The figure faces forwards with raised right arm and left arm extended downwards. Little is visible of its facial features save for traces of eyes and nose; the headgear is more like a Tam O'Shanter than the Phrygian cap or helmet worn by other riding figures. The torso appears to be naked, but with little modelling of anatomy. There are two integrally cast projections emerging from the figure, both showing metal displacement from hammering on their ends.Footnote ⁶⁰ The longer piece between the legs may have attached it to a horse, perhaps formed from organic materials, whilst the shorter projection on the chest may have been intended to attach a shield, no trace of which survives. Moulding around the waist and thighs may represent a kilt-like garment.

FIG. 12.

Carlton in Lindrick, figurine of riding male (No. 12). Scale 1:1. (Photo: C. Burrill; © C. Burrill and Derby City Council)

Although uncertainties over dress and attributes do not allow the figure to be unambiguously identified, the pose is similar to the riding martial god of whom numerous figurines are documented from eastern England. PAS examples include those from Stoke cum Quy, Cambs. (SF-99E3E4), Gate Burton, Lincs. (LIN-D53ED6), and Riseley, Beds. (BH-B0BF961). The findspot of this example lies close to the north-eastern extremity of the distribution of the riding figure.Footnote ⁶¹

SHROPSHIRE

(13) Worfield (WAW-0AE0C4) ( fig. 13).Footnote ⁶² A copper-alloy furniture mount in the form of an eagle, 39.1 mm tall, 31.8 mm wide (wingspan), and 37.2 mm thick (beak tip to corroded lugs), weighing 50 g. Its wings are part extended and reach to the bird's feet. The bird faces forwards and its head, with small circular eyes, tapers to a blunt, slightly hooked beak. The body is simply modelled, squat but with powerful legs and chest. The plumage on the body, upper legs and face is depicted with deep hatching. The eagle stands on a small spherical ball between its feet. Protruding from the back are two rectangular copper-alloy lugs which are covered with iron corrosion. Mounts and figurines in the form of an eagle are not infrequent — a likely product of their association with Jupiter. The modelling of this mount is more sophisticated than the other schematically rendered examples so far recorded by the PAS. A similar example is known from Grimmlinghausen (Neuss).Footnote ⁶³

FIG. 13.

Worfield, mount in form of an eagle (No. 13). Scale 1:1. (Photo: A. Bolton; © A. Bolton and Birmingham City Council)

NORTHAMPTONSHIRE

(14) Wood Burcote (NARC-B9DE37) ( fig. 14).Footnote ⁶⁴ A complete copper-alloy leaf-shaped seal-box terminating in a knop and inlaid with enamel, including complex millefiori elements, some of which is missing or cracked. The object is 32 mm long, 19 mm wide, 9 mm high and weighs 11.5 g. The upper half of the lid is decorated with a drop-shaped field showing grids of blue and white millefiori squares on a red enamel background. Separated from this by a pair of reserved copper-alloy leaf motifs is a further pair of ‘leaves’ inlaid with blue enamel. At the apex is a cell containing white enamel bearing a rosette with a red dot at its centre from which seven blue petals radiate. A circular knop attached to the apex contains red enamel. The base has three holes.

This leaf-shaped type is widely distributed in the North-West provinces in the second century a.d., being closest to Andrews' forms P2 and P3.Footnote ⁶⁵ The decoration, however, is exceptional, and no close parallel has been found for it, though a small number of other examples have similarly complex millefiori inlay.Footnote ⁶⁶ Seal-boxes have been reported to the PAS in significant numbers, substantially increasing the sample known from a rural setting. This suggests that circulation of documents in a rural milieu need not be restricted to areas with close connections to the frontiers.Footnote ⁶⁷

FIG. 14.

Wood Burcote, seal-box with denarius inside (No. 14). Scale 1:1. (Photo: J. Cassidy; © J. Cassidy)

The seal-box, on opening, was found to contain a Trajanic denarius dated to a.d. 117, with the figure of Fortuna on the reverse (NARC-B9F672, RIC 315).While seal-boxes have occasionally been found in association with coin hoards, plausibly as the seal for a bag, no parallel has been found for the placing of a coin within the seal-box.Footnote ⁶⁸ As an isolated instance with limited context information it is very difficult to interpret, but the coin might be suggested to have been a votive offering rather than to have been placed in it for safe keeping.

CAMBRIDGESHIRE

(15) Teversham (SF-98F782) ( fig. 15).Footnote ⁶⁹ A complete copper-alloy zoomorphic plate brooch in the form of a stag. The object is well preserved, with a dark brown patina and traces of corrosion products. It is 31.4 mm wide, 30.3 mm high, 4.3 mm thick and weighs 9 g. The stag is shown moving forward with its head turned backwards towards its tail. The animal has an elongated nose, lozenge-shaped eye with central circular indentation and antlers which curve to form an almost complete ring. The antlers are decorated on their outer edges with notches to represent tines. The long body of the animal carries two cells, one near-rectangular which curves up at the neck and the other circular at the haunches, though no trace of enamel survives. The thrust of the front leg is accentuated by a groove which runs between it and the body. Small projections indicate tail and phallus. Both hooves join a flat ground line, decorated with multiple vertical notches. A double-lug secures the head of the hinged pin, which is held in place by a rivet. At the opposite end behind the foreleg is the integral, rectangular catchplate, which projects from the brooch with a curving hooked terminal.

FIG. 15.

Teversham, zoomorphic plate brooch in the form of a stag (No. 15). Scale 1:1. (Photo: A. Brown; © Suffolk County Council)

The stag is represented in other zoomorphic plate brooches, for example from Corbridge, Coventina's Well, Suffolk (SF-CFC6D7), Norfolk (NMS-365796) and Essex (SWYOR-201A54).Footnote ⁷⁰ Closer parallels for the form are recorded from Cirencester and South Ferriby, Lincs.Footnote ⁷¹ Continental examples are also known, though this specific form occurs very rarely, being paralleled by only two examples in Feugère's corpus (type 29a12c).Footnote ⁷²

BUCKINGHAMSHIRE

(16) Wing (BUC-F52027) and (BUC-F53C66) ( fig. 16).Footnote ⁷³ Two similar furniture or box mounts in the form of lion faces or heads, one slightly larger and heavier than the other, found within 5 cm of one another. BUC-F52027 is 97.3 mm high, 83.1 mm wide, 35 mm deep, the metal is 3 mm thick and it weighs 224 g. BUC-F53C66 is 83.1 mm high, 79.4 mm wide, 35 mm deep, the metal is 2.4 mm thick and it weighs 211 g. Both are quite well preserved with a green-brown patina, but small patches of green corrosion are visible, especially on the broken edges of the base. In both cases the face and especially the muzzle stand proud of the base plate, and the fringe of mane around it, with separate curling strands delineated, is in progressively shallower relief. The eyes are fully modelled, including brows, lids, pupils and irises. The nose is broad and flat and the wide mouth gapes open; within both teeth can be seen. The ears are recessed irregular circles within the mane. Both faces are lopsided, the left eye and ear being lower than the right. The base is not quite square and in both examples two of the corners are broken away.

FIG. 16.

Wing, one of two furniture or box mounts in the form of lion heads (No. 16). Scale 1:1. (Photo: R. Tyrell: © R. Tyrell and Buckinghamshire County Council)

Although there are no traces of attachment, the objects are likely to have been furniture mounts. Lion-head mounts, albeit smaller, are relatively frequent finds in South-East England and many examples have been recorded by the PAS.Footnote ⁷⁴ The contexts of many excavated examples suggest that the smaller fittings commonly derive from wooden boxes used as containers for cremated bone, reflecting a wider association between funerary contexts and lion images.Footnote ⁷⁵ However the Wing mounts are much larger than most examples from Britain; several mounts of comparable size are reported by Menzel from the lower Rhine, but without the square plate.Footnote ⁷⁶

(17) Wing (BUC-C9CEE4; 2012 T831) ( fig. 17).Footnote ⁷⁷ A tiny Roman gold finger-ring, 13.5 mm in height and 14.6 mm in diameter, probably for a child, dated to the first to second centuries a.d. The ring has a D-shaped hoop, simple shoulders and an expanded flat oval bezel. Soldered to the bezel is a schematic phallus, in low relief, comprising a plain circular-sectioned wire with a pair of flanking basal spheres for the testicles. A very similar example with a phallus soldered on the bezel is known from Faversham, Kent.Footnote ⁷⁸ The phallus as a powerful apotropaic device to avert the Evil Eye and ensure good fortune, is widely documented by the PAS as a pendant and in other forms in rural contexts.Footnote ⁷⁹

FIG. 17.

Wing, gold finger-ring dating from first to second century a.d. (No. 17). Scale 2:1. (Photo: R. Tyrell; © R. Tyrell and Buckinghamshire County Council)

(18) Charndon (SUR-331582) ( fig. 18).Footnote ⁸⁰ A small figurine, 23.9 mm long and weighing 8 g, in the form of a sleeping hound with a shaggy coat, probably a mount from another metal object. The animal lies with its head on its forepaws, but only the right front leg is showing. The fur sweeps down its flanks on either side of the spine and the tail may be visible on its left side. The head is wedge-shaped and the oversized eyes are crudely rendered as incised circles and punched pupils. The underside of the object is flat and from its centre projects an integral rivet. The head and shaggy coat resemble those of other figurines of sleeping dogs, sometimes identified as Molossian hounds, for example one said to be from Syria and another among bronzes from Speyer, though without a findspot; the rendering of anatomy and fur is finer in these other examples.Footnote ⁸¹ Representations of sleeping dogs, emblems of defended domesticity, as well as Molossians, used for hunting, are also common in other portable media, for example lamps, gems and figurines as well as Iron Age coins from Britain.Footnote ⁸²

FIG. 18.

Charndon, small figurine in the form of a sleeping hound (No. 18). Scale 1:1. (Photo: D. Williams; © D. Williams)

HERTFORDSHIRE

(19) Stanstead Abbots (BH-247012) ( fig. 19).Footnote ⁸³ A finely-made figurine of Mars, 84.4 mm high, 32.5 mm wide, a maximum of 14.2 mm thick and weighing 75.9 g. Wear and corrosion have effaced some surface detail and the right hand and lower legs are lost; the patination of the break suggests that this occurred in antiquity. The god stands facing slightly to his right. The pose suggests that the missing right hand originally held a spear. Both legs are bent at the knee, the left more so, indicating that, as in the case of similar figurines, the stance puts greater weight on the right leg. The upper edges of the greaves are visible just above the knee. Details of dress and anatomy are quite carefully modelled. The helmeted god wears a square-necked cuirass, crossed by a strap (baldric) from the right shoulder to the waist, and below it a kilt reaches to just above the knee. A cloak hangs from the left shoulder to the left knee, its folds being fully rendered. The left arm, longer than the right, bends at the elbow and extends forward from beneath the cloak. In other figures of this type the left hand holds a shield, but the closeness of arm to body makes this impossible in this instance and the gripping hand is empty. The upper right arm is held close to the body, and is also bent at the elbow, with its extremity lost. The better preserved right side of the face suggests careful rendering of facial features. The oval eye is rimmed by an eyelid and contains a moulded pupil; the nose is broad and flat and the narrow mouth is framed by a full beard and moustache. Curls of luxuriant hair can be seen either side of the face and beneath the Corinthian helmet, which has an elaborate though poorly preserved crest.

FIG. 19.

Stanstead Abbots, figurine of Mars (No. 19). Scale 1:1. (Photo: J. Watters; © J. Watters)

This representation of Mars as a bearded mature figure in muscled cuirass is a common type in the province. In comparison with the figure from Wrawby described above (No. 7), its iconography is more typical of the type, though some of the minor details lack close parallels, for example the wearing of a cloak and baldric, and the neck of the cuirass is more commonly rounded than square as here.Footnote ⁸⁴ This is a more classicising piece than many, though its poor preservation makes close comparison with similar pieces difficult, for example the figurine from Earith, Cambs.Footnote ⁸⁵ The style may indicate an early imperial date.Footnote ⁸⁶ The findspot lies squarely within the main focus of the distribution of Mars figurines.Footnote ⁸⁷

NORFOLK

(20) Brampton (NMS-8B3A40) ( fig. 20).Footnote ⁸⁸ A miniature head of Socrates in garnet, with a fracture on the dome of the head and several cracks and small chips to the head and neck. The short neck is polished with a shallow line engraved at the front. This may indicate that it had been cut down from a longer neck in antiquity when it was perhaps inserted into a bust in another precious material. This representation shows Socrates bearded, with a round head, bald pate and long hair in curving strands to the sides and back of his head, but leaving the ears visible. His face has prominent cheekbones and brow, a lined forehead, short stubby nose and sagging folds of skin beneath the eyes. In the latter the lids are arched and the irises deep drilled. The beard is carefully carved, its curls being longer than the side burns and the short moustache which almost hides the upper lip. The mouth is slightly open and turned down at the corners. The head is 20 mm high, 17 mm wide and weighs 14.5 g. It may be dated to the first century b.c. to first century a.d.

FIG. 20.

Brampton, miniature garnet head of Socrates (No. 20). Scale 3:1. (Photo: C. Wagner; © Beazley Archive, University of Oxford)

The features described above appear already in the earliest depictions of Socrates (types A and B) in the fourth century b.c. The portrait represented here, however, is a composite of the two types, this being the commonest form of his depiction in the imperial period.Footnote ⁸⁹ Portraits of philosophers were a popular subject in the Roman period on engraved gems (intaglios and cameos) made from precious and semi-precious stones.Footnote ⁹⁰ However, other examples of a secure British provenance are not known.Footnote ⁹¹

SUFFOLK

(21) Thelnetham (SF-BCB2B5) ( fig. 21).Footnote ⁹² A complete copper-alloy first-century a.d. cavalry parade harness ‘trifid’ pendant, one of several examples which would have been suspended from a phalera. It is 67.5 mm long, 40.0 mm wide, 3.34–5.28 mm thick, and weighs 35 g. The rectangular plate which attached the pendant to the phalera has a raised central rib decorated with three saltire motifs with traces of niello inlay. A narrower grooved neck connects this to the body of the pendant proper, a large leaf-like plate decorated with perforations, inlaid niello and white metal of which traces survive. The main niello elements comprise a trifoliate motif beneath the neck and to either side of this a scroll, at one end of which is a small pellet, and at the other an ivy(?) leaf within a spiral. Across the pendant are three pairs of kidney-shaped perforations, and to either side of its acorn-like tip a series of parallel grooves, all symmetrically arranged. To either side of the tip, the scallop-edged lobes also suggest a leaf-like character.

FIG. 21.

Thelnetham, first-century a.d. cavalry harness pendant (No. 21). Scale 1:1. (Drawn by D. Wreathall; © Suffolk County Council)

The form and decoration of the pendant are characteristic of Early Principate equine fittings identified by Bishop and Coulston.Footnote ⁹³ They are widely distributed in Britain, with a further fine example also having been recorded from Waldringfield, Suffolk (SF-BC1C94).Footnote ⁹⁴ Several similar examples are reported from the Batavian area, including instances with similar grooved decoration as well as other motifs, in particular among a group from Wijk bij Duurstede.Footnote ⁹⁵ The diversity of contexts reflects the wide distribution of metalwork associated with the Roman army, which has been noted elsewhere for objects reported to the PAS.Footnote ⁹⁶

(22) Clare (SF-4E4A90) ( fig. 22).Footnote ⁹⁷ A cast copper-alloy strap fitting comprising a central cylindrical shaft with integrally cast terminal knops bearing conical lion heads. The artefact is 26.6–51.9 mm wide, 31.46 mm long, 11.55 mm in maximum diameter at bar and weighs 82.6 g. The lions have flattened triangular snouts, open mouths, incised oval eyes and prominent brows. Both have manes that extend from the head around the sides of the face and jaw. A slightly curving plate with scalloped edges also connects each terminal.

FIG. 22.

Clare, strap fitting with lion heads on knops (No. 22). Scale 1:1. (Drawn by D. Wreathall; © Suffolk County Council)

The precise function of this object remains uncertain and a close parallel has not as yet been identified. Given its size and form it is plausible that it formed a strap fitting, perhaps for horse harness or similar. A copper-alloy harness ring of unknown provenance with two opposed lion heads emerging from a calyx is recorded by Menzel, but its form is not very similar to this.Footnote ⁹⁸

(23) Combs (SF-0349E2) ( fig. 23).Footnote ⁹⁹ A copper-alloy enamelled panel from a small hexagonal flask, broken at one end. The panel is trapezoidal in shape and measures 53.2 mm in length and 29 mm at its widest point, is 2.9 mm at its maximum thickness and weighs 15.4 g. The front face has enamelled decoration that is divided into two recessed fields inlaid with blue enamel, much corroded, and containing geometric decoration. The larger field carries two sinuous S-scrolls placed back to back with pointed oval terminals extending into each of the corners. Within each terminal is a comma scroll with cusp; a leaf sprouts from the outside of the two smaller terminals. A further comma-like tendril curls off from each scroll in the centre of the field. The back-to-back S-scrolls frame an oval, in the centre of which is a further elongated motif, perhaps a stalk and leaf. At the broader end of the panel the terminals of the scroll frame a single raised pellet. On the long sides of the panel a semi-circular lobe extends from the border. The second, smaller panel of decoration is mostly lost, but what survives closely resembles the decoration found on a very similar vessel from Corbridge, i.e. the tips of a leaf pair which rise from a pelta.Footnote ¹⁰⁰ On the outside edge of the enamelled fields is a notched border. This piece is very closely paralleled in most of the other vessels of similar form, one of which is a panel from a flask recorded by the PAS from Sutton, Suffolk (SF10415).Footnote ¹⁰¹

FIG. 23.

Combs, enamelled panel from small hexagonal flask (No. 23). Scale 1:1. (Photo: A. Brown; © Suffolk County Council)

AVON

(24) Burrington (SWYOR-29B362) ( fig. 24).Footnote ¹⁰² A cast copper-alloy figurine of a capricorn, 250 mm long, 37.5 mm high, 88.3 mm wide and weighing 886 g, in very good condition, missing only a single horn. The metal has a smooth dark brown patina, though there are corrosion patches, particularly on the right shoulder and neck. The base of the broken horn is well patinated, indicating that the damage had occurred in antiquity. The figure's forelegs are outstretched, the right being raised higher than the left. The head is held upright and the body, curving slightly upwards, tapers to the tail which expands into a three-pronged fin. The mouth and nose are schematically rendered as incised lines, the former flaring at the corners. The lentoid eyes are more fully modelled, being framed in raised sockets, though their placing is asymmetrical, the right being higher on the face than the left. Shallow bands of hatching indicate fur on the face, still visible even on the muzzle and forehead where surface detail is more worn; a thicker band of hair spans the top of the head. The hatching extends to the fringes of the ears which prick up, are nicked along their edges and recessed within. The beard, strands of which are separately indicated, reaches almost to the ankle of the right foreleg. From the neck to the upper forelimbs the fur is rendered in rows of shallow curving strands, though most of the legs are smooth. Hooves and forelegs are well shaped. Beyond the forelimbs the surface texture turns from fur to scales, the imbrication covering the remainder of the body to the tail. Moulded ribs divide the fin into three prongs which are further subdivided by ribbed lines. The figurine has no evidence of attachments, for example to a globe on which the capricorn's forelimbs commonly rest in other media, nor for a cornucopia sometimes supported on its back. On the underside of the figure, just beneath the forelimbs, is a flattened facet on which it balances when placed on a surface.

FIG. 24.

Burrington, figurine of capricorn (No. 24). Scale 2:3. (Photo: A. Downes; © A. Downes)

Metal figures of a capricorn (or other Zodiac signs) occur very rarely in Britain and beyond, with no certain instances being recorded, for example, in a recent corpus of Romano-British figurines.Footnote ¹⁰³ Capricorn figures found at Wiesbaden and Martinsbühel bei Zirl (Tirol), near Innsbruck, both with globes, had a socket beneath for attachment to a pole.Footnote ¹⁰⁴ Their small size makes it unlikely that they were elements of a military standard, for example as depicted on a first-century a.d. gravestone from Mainz of a solider of the Fourteenth Legion; a use as a vehicle or furniture fitting may be more likely for the socketed examples.Footnote ¹⁰⁵ Groups of copper-alloy zodiac signs, a little smaller than the Burrington example, in the form of appliqués occur in hoards at L'Angleur (Liège) — c. 15–17 cm long, where they are probably part of a Mithraic group — and Marengo (Piedmont), which includes a capricorn, also smaller than the Burrington example. In both cases these were perhaps attached to boards or other furniture, probably in a zodiacal configuration.Footnote ¹⁰⁶ The absence of any evidence for attachment of the Burrington capricorn makes it very unlikely that it served any such function and it seems very likely that it was a freestanding figure.

The sign of Capricorn is most famously associated in antiquity with Augustus. While the precise astrological reasoning for his adoption of the capricorn symbol remains elusive — since it was not his sun sign — diverse positive connotations can be identified, including rebirth of the sun after the winter solstice, association with the Golden Age of Saturn, rule over the West and, through the capricorn's hybrid nature, over land and sea.Footnote ¹⁰⁷ The sign was widely reproduced on Augustan coins from at least 28 b.c, a use referred to in Suetonius' account of the revelation of future greatness to Augustus by an astrologer at Apollonia in 43 b.c. Footnote ¹⁰⁸ The motif features in other Augustan art, notably the Gemma Augustea.Footnote ¹⁰⁹ Emperors of the first to third centuries a.d. continued to put the sign on their coins.Footnote ¹¹⁰ It was also appropriated for the coins of late Iron Age reges in Britain, as well as by client rulers of Rome elsewhere.Footnote ¹¹¹ Like other motifs from the Augustan repertoire, the capricorn was translated into non-imperial settings, on terracotta roof-tile antefixes, altars, funerary monuments, glass pastes and gems, and brooches, including examples from Britain.Footnote ¹¹² The symbol is best known in Britain as an emblem of the Second Augustan Legion, depicted on building dedications and other inscriptions, though it is also used by other units founded under Augustus.Footnote ¹¹³ The antoniniani of Carausius also bear legionary symbols, including the capricorn, and the wider evocation in Carausian propaganda of a restored Golden Age linked to Saturn, ruler of this sign, might also provide a possible context for the Burrington image.Footnote ¹¹⁴

WILTSHIRE

(25) Tisbury (WILT-AD4A33) ( fig. 25).Footnote ¹¹⁵ A complete cast copper-alloy miniature vessel in the form of an amphora, 27.6 mm in length, 20.3 mm at its widest (handles), 13.1 mm thick with a base diameter of 6.9 mm, and weighing 15.3 g. The vessel has a broad mouth and widens to its centre before tapering to an expanded, flat base. The handles project outwards from the neck and turn at a sharp angle to reconnect to the vessel just above its centre.

FIG. 25.

Tisbury, miniature vessel in the form of an amphora (No. 25). Scale 1:1. (Photo: R. Henry; © R. Henry and Salisbury and South Wiltshire Museum)

Miniature objects have been recorded in considerable numbers by the PAS, the overwhelming majority comprising axes though other types are documented, including weapons and miniature altars.Footnote ¹¹⁶ Miniature vessels in metal are rare occurrences, clay being a more common medium, and few examples have been recorded by the PAS. The majority of these represent tablewares.Footnote ¹¹⁷ A larger example of a miniature amphora with a form more precisely rendered and more easily attributable to a type — which perhaps served as a container in its own right — is documented as a stray find from Springhead.Footnote ¹¹⁸

(26) Downton (WILT-5D5B17) ( fig. 26).Footnote ¹¹⁹ A near-complete and well-preserved copper-alloy and enamel zoomorphic brooch in the form of a running wild boar, 33.4 mm long, 26.3 mm high, 10.3 mm thick and weighing 7.5 g. The rather narrow head ends in an open mouth with upturned snout. The eye is a punched ring and the ear is a large triangular moulding. Grooves are scored across the face. As well as a very high crest, the thick neck carries a double ‘mane-like’ grooved collar. The rump, with genitals indicated, is disproportionately large, a feature accentuated by a groove which separates it from the body. It carries five enamelled dots in a quincunx, red with the exception of the blue central dot. On the body are three further dots in red and blue inlay. The hooves rest on a horizontal bar, decorated with notches, which forms the groundline. On the back, the head of the pin is held between two close-set lugs.

FIG. 26.

Downton, brooch in the form of a running wild boar (No. 26). Scale 1:1. (Photo: K. Hinds; © K. Hinds and Salisbury and South Wiltshire Museum)

A considerable number (more than 250) of zoomorphic brooches have been documented from Britain by the PAS, though the majority represent birds.Footnote ¹²⁰ The boar, only rarely represented, also appears on brooches from Willington and Jevington, East Sussex (SUSS-DB2C32), and Burbage, Wilts. (WILT-A2E866).Footnote ¹²¹

This brooch type, Feugère's type 29a11a, is closely paralleled in a small number of examples distributed across North-Western Europe and is of likely continental origin.Footnote ¹²² The type is likely to be of second- to third-century date.

HAMPSHIRE

(27) Owslebury (HAMP-F92224) ( fig. 27).Footnote ¹²³ An elaborate cast copper-alloy first-century a.d. strap fitting; the female part of a ‘bar-and-keyhole’ strap fastener from a harness. The object is 48 mm long, 12.9 mm wide, 7.6 mm thick and weighs 13.8 g. It has two connected parts, a thick bar and a keyhole-shaped fitting. The bar was attached to a strap by way of two rivets located towards each end of the underside of the fitting. It is squared off at the stepped end that accommodates the ‘keyhole’ element through a rectangular slot. The opposite end is broken, though some curvilinear decoration survives. Silver plating survives on most of this decorated area. The main part of the keyhole fitting is open to allow the passage of the strap. From a rectangular block at the base of the open element a rod travels through the slot in the bar so that the fitting can hinge.

FIG. 27.

Owslebury, the female part of a ‘bar-and-keyhole’ strap-fastener (No. 27). Scale 1:1. (Photo: R. Webley; © R. Webley and Winchester Museums Service)

A number of such fasteners have been published, but only one example, from Twyford and Thorpe, Leics., has been traced on the PAS database (LEIC-0017E1).Footnote ¹²⁴ Other strap fittings are represented by numerous examples.Footnote ¹²⁵

ISLE OF WIGHT

(28) Shalfleet (IOW-1D56E0) ( fig. 28).Footnote ¹²⁶ A corroded and incomplete early Roman cast copper-alloy vessel escutcheon from a Rose Ash type bowl (c. a.d. 50–75), with traces of a dark greenish brown patina. It is 18.2 mm long, 16.8 mm wide and 12.1 mm thick. The object is circular in plan and has an off-centre circular ‘hour-glass’ aperture. The moulded outer face has two lips, two rectangular cells and a V-shaped cell which contains traces of red glass. A small break has occurred across the integral rivet which is circular in cross-section. The ring-handle of the bowl would have passed through the perforation and the rivet would have been attached to the bowl's upper wall. The inside of the aperture is smooth and the break on the rivet is abraded. There are similar examples from Langstone, Newport, still attached to the bowl, and White Castle, Llantilio Crosseny, Mons., as well as from Hod Hill, Dorset.Footnote ¹²⁷ The decoration echoes the lipped links on bridle bits of Polden Hill sub-type.Footnote ¹²⁸

FIG. 28.

Shalfleet, vessel escutcheon of Rose Hill type bowl (No. 28). Scale 1:1. (Photo: F. Basford; © F. Basford)

DORSET

(29) Spetisbury (DOR-B43092; 2012 T840) ( fig. 29).Footnote ¹²⁹ A silver finger-ring 31.9 mm long, 19.3 mm wide and 12.4 mm high, weighing 7.2 g. The bezel is octagonal and contains a denarius of Elagabalus (a.d. 218–22) with the obverse uppermost. The coin is held in place by the folded edges of the bezel. The hoop, quite thick with a D-section, has flaring shoulders where it meets the bezel. Each shoulder is decorated with deeply incised triangular notches. The band has been bent and torn so that it is no longer attached to the bezel and at the back of the bezel a tear reveals a small part of the reverse of the coin. The coin's obverse carries the legend IMP ANTONIN[VS PIVS] AVG, with a bust facing right, laureate, and draped. What is visible of the reverse shows a laureate figure advancing left. Two similar bezels (without the bands surviving) were recorded by the PAS from Ulceby, Lincs. (Julia Maesa) (LIN-A8E677) and Chirton, Wilts. (Plautilla) (WILT-B0C652). The setting of coins within jewellery is not commonly documented in Britain and known examples are predominantly in gold.Footnote ¹³⁰

FIG. 29.

Spetisbury, silver finger-ring with bezel containing denarius (No. 29). Scale 1:1. (Photo: C. Hayward Trevarthen; © Somerset County Council)

(30) Bradford Abbas (DOR-29D957; 2012 T691) ( fig. 30).Footnote ¹³¹ An oval box bezel from a fourth-century gold finger-ring, not quite circular, measuring 16.2 by 17.3 mm, 4.95 mm thick and weighing 1.5 g, and a little distorted, with the remainder of the ring lost. The backing plate and walls of the bezel are formed of a single sheet of gold. Within it is another thin sheet of gold decorated in repoussé with a dextrarum iunctio motif, i.e. a pair of clasped hands, surrounded by a beaded border. It is kept in place by a loose, chamfered band which extends around the inside of the bezel and is not fixed to its walls. A twisted gold wire surrounds the outside of the cell, approximately a third of the way up the walls. A short remnant of plain wire below this suggests that other decoration has not survived. This is very similar to two dextrarum iunctio rings in the British Museum collections from Richborough and the Thetford Treasure. The motif is also reproduced in other media in the province, for example on gems and medallions.Footnote ¹³²

FIG. 30.

Bradford Abbas, oval bezel in gold with dextrarum iunctio motif (No. 30). Scale 2:1. (Photo: C. Hayward Trevarthen; © Somerset County Council)

SURREY

(31) Cranleigh (SUR-0BA197) ( fig. 31).Footnote ¹³³ A guard or hilt component from a late Iron Age or Roman sword or dagger of Piggott Group IVB. The object is 54 mm long, 27.2 mm wide, 18.3 mm thick and weighs 33.5 g. A groove runs all the way around the guard above the junction with the blade. The object retains slight traces of niello lines on the edges and on the collar. Part of the tang and blade junction survives within; the surviving tang measures 18.6 mm by c. 8 mm and the blade measures 36.2 mm by 6.7 mm.

FIG. 31.

Cranleigh, guard or hilt component from sword or dagger (No. 31). Scale 1:1. (Photo: D. Williams; © D. Williams)

The closest parallels are an example from Newstead and a piece of unknown provenance in Perth museum.Footnote ¹³⁴ Manning has shown that there is good evidence for at least some of these hilt guards having been used on swords of Roman type.Footnote ¹³⁵ Other examples are known from Castlehill, Dalry, Ayrshire; Boroughbridge, N Yorks. (DUR-05EFC7); Whittington, Northumbd (NCL-1CABE7), and Llandow, Vale of Glamorgan (NMGW-9D6CA5).Footnote ¹³⁶

KENT

(32) Petham (KENT-7D72A7) ( fig. 32).Footnote ¹³⁷ A copper-alloy balsamarium decorated with relief scenes of a Bacchic thiasos comprising a satyr and three human figures. The object is 50 mm in height, has a maximum diameter of 42 mm and weighs 74.6 g. Damage has caused the loss of the lower limbs of one figure. The body of the vessel has an ovoid form, truncated at either end where the separately cast foot and the lid are missing, and a smooth interior. The surface detail is a little blurred by wear, especially on areas of higher relief, but is otherwise in very good condition with a well-preserved green patina.

FIG. 32.

Petham, balsamarium decorated with relief scene (No. 32). Scale 1.25:1. (Photo: A. Savage; © Canterbury Archaeological Trust Ltd)

Where it joined the neck the vessel is ringed with an egg-and-dart like motif. The frieze of figures is described, starting with a satyr, in an anti-clockwise direction. The satyr is shown moving to his right, but with head and body twisted back towards the preceding figure. Damage to the vessel has removed much of the patina on the torso. His right hand is raised palm upwards above his head, and he holds an amphora of generic form and a cloak or skin in the crook of his left arm. His short horns, set close together, rise vertically from his forehead. Separated from the satyr by a thyrsus, the following musician with arched back and puffed cheeks blows a horn and pipe and is naked except for a garment knotted at the waist, below which a tear to the vessel body has removed most of the legs. The tree which separates this from the next figure has two main branches rising from its trunk, one shorter with a bud in the process of opening and the other fully flowered, and one longer branch with four shoots which terminate in buds or fruits at different stages of maturity from sealed to fully open. To the right of the tree is a standing youth with his back to the viewer. His head, crowned by a thick cap of tousled hair, is twisted to his right towards the figure behind him. His left hand supports the base of a large bell-shaped krater placed on his left shoulder, while the right hand raised high grips its beaded rim.Footnote ¹³⁸ The body of the krater is girded with an ivy(?) garland; a handle is visible near its base. Separating the youth from a second musician is another thyrsus. The musician, naked except for an animal skin knotted at the waist and with the tail dangling between his legs, plays a pair of pipes held high. He also appears to wear an animal skin on his head. Separating him from the satyr is another tree, its branches and shoots also ending in buds at various phases of development.

The anatomical detail and surface texture of the figures — including the bristling shanks of the satyr, for example, as well as the coiffures and details of cloaks and skins — are all rendered with care. The exertion of simultaneous forward motion while twisting back and playing instruments or carrying loads is well conveyed by tensed muscles and distended cheeks. The hands are less successfully rendered, with fingers and thumbs being oversized and clumsily configured. The backward glances of the satyr and the youth carrying the krater towards the figures that follow divide the group into two pairs, each comprising a bearer of wine and a musician. At the top and base of the vessel, the arms and legs of each pair converge to frame the thyrsus, especially the capping pine cone which its disproportionate size renders the most prominent feature of the frieze.

The vessel form is paralleled by other copper-alloy balsamaria, of which the few known examples of this type are dated on grounds of limited contextual evidence to the third century a.d. Footnote ¹³⁹ The decoration lacks a specific parallel, but is consistent with the preference on objects of this type for scenes that reference directly or allusively the pleasure of the symposium. Other Dionysiac scenes include thiasoi featuring the drunken Hercules and satyrs.Footnote ¹⁴⁰

Few examples of objects of this type are known from Roman Britain, either with relief or other decoration.Footnote ¹⁴¹ Most of the vessels of this type, where the findspot is known, come from grave contexts, both in Britain (Corbridge, Bayford (Kent), Nun's Bridge (Cambs.)) and on the Continent.Footnote ¹⁴² The findspot for the Petham vessel, a few hundred metres west of Stone Street, close to a possible villa and late Iron Age and Roman cemeteries, suggests that it too may have been deposited as a grave good. A funerary context allows a potential eschatological reading of the vessel's symbolism, both images of thiasos and of abundant vegetation evoking the blissful afterlife and the powers of regeneration attributed to the god whose followers are depicted.

(33) Teston (KENT-0542E1) ( fig. 33).Footnote ¹⁴³ An enamelled disc brooch of probable second-century a.d. date, probably in an alloy of tin rather than copper. The brooch is circular with a rectangular section and is 29.1 mm in diameter, 1.7 mm thick and weighs 6.8 g. The disc has a large opening in the centre, and twelve rounded projections surviving around its rim with the remains of four more missing. The disc carries two concentric circles of enamel decoration. The outer has nineteen small panels of fine millefiori glass, with space for five more which are now lost. Each contains an eight-petal blue rosette with a red dot in its centre on a white background. The inner register appears to be filled with a single colour, which is now degraded. The reverse is undecorated. The head of the complete pin, 23.4 mm long, is hinged between two sub-rectangular lugs. Its catchplate projects from beneath the brooch. Hattatt records another example with an open centre.Footnote ¹⁴⁴ The ring form is rare and it is difficult to find close parallels for the detailed design of this brooch, but it is likely to be related to the series of disc brooches with concentric rings of complex millefiori or blocks of enamel probably made on the Continent.Footnote ¹⁴⁵ Similar decoration is also found on other objects, for example the seal-box from Wood Burcote (No. 14 above) and a number of discs and studs recorded by the Portable Antiquities Scheme.Footnote ¹⁴⁶

FIG. 33.

Teston, enamelled disc brooch with millefiori glass inlay (No. 33). Scale 1:1. (Photo: J. Jackson; © J. Jackson)