TREASURE ANNU AL REPORT 2005/6 - Portable Antiquities Scheme

IRON AGE
I) ToRCs AND ToRC ELEmENTs
80. bawsey area, Norfolk:
Iron Age electrum torc wires (2006 T160)
Date: 300 BC–AD 1
Discovery: Found by Mr S Brown while metaldetecting
in February 2006, within 20m of previous
discoveries of similar wire fragments and a torc
terminal in 1989 and 1996.
Description: Four fragments of twisted electrum wires
from a twisted wire torc, each wire made from two
wires twisted around each other in a clockwise fashion.
The fragments appear to have been broken rather than
have been cut. Lengths: 18–36mm; total weight: 4.46g.
Surface analysis indicates gold and silver contents of
26–38% & 54–66% respectively.
Disposition: British Museum.
J D HILL
81. King’s Lynn area, Norfolk:
Iron Age electrum torc terminal (2006 T13)
Date: c. 200–1 BC
Discovery: Found by Mr T Norman while metaldetecting
in December 2005.
Description: An electrum buffer terminal from an Iron
Age torc (neck-ring). The decorated terminal has broken
off the twisted wire rope body. This is an example of a
‘buffer’ type of torc terminal; on the back can be seen
the stubs of the broken wires that made up the twisted
rope of the body. These wires were original cast on
to the terminal. It is difficult to establish how many
wires there originally were. The black silver oxides on
the broken ends of some of the wires and lack of crisp
breaks suggest this is an ancient break.
Running around the side of the terminal is a band of
cable decoration between two parallel lines. The cabling
decoration was made after casting, but the parallel
lines were made in the mould. The front flat surface of
the terminal is decorated with an engraved curvilinear
La Tène design, areas of which are infilled with a ‘basket
work’ pattern made up of lines of finely punched dots.
This design appears to have been engraved freehand.
It is centred on a triskele with three thin pelta or
curved sided triangles as arms. The two longer of these
arms lead to and wrap partly around an empty circle.
The other side of these circles makes one side of a
large curved sided triangle, infilled with basket work;
the other sides being the side of the next arm of the
triskele. The third shorter arm of the triskele touches a
large irregular curved sided triangle, infilled with basket
work but with an empty circle in the middle.
An engraved scroll leads from the shorter arm and ends
in a small empty circle. Diameter: 22mm;
thickness: 7mm; weight: 13.78g.
Discussion: This is an example of a well-known
Iron Age object type; part of a multi-strand torc.
Similar buffer terminals with engraved or raised cast
decoration have been found at Bawsey and Snettisham
(Hoards F and H) in north-west Norfolk. The closest
parallel for the decoration is from Snettisham Hoard
F (British Museum reg. no. P1991 5-1 19). This style
of torc terminal is not as common as the ring-shaped
terminals, as seen on the Sedgeford or Snettisham
Great Torc, but at Snettisham are found in the same
hoard as other torcs of this type.
Disposition: Norwich Castle Museum.
J D HILL
82. Newark, Nottinghamshire:
Iron Age electrum torc (2005 T52)
Date: c. 200–50 BC
Discovery: Found by Mr M Richardson while metaldetecting
in February 2005.
Description: An Iron Age multi-twisted strand torc
with decorated hollow ring-shaped terminals.
Like the ‘Great Torc’ from Ken Hill, Snettisham, and the
Sedgeford Torc, this torc is made from 8 twisted gold
wire ‘ropes’, each made from (possibly) four wires, that
were fixed to hollow ring-shaped terminals decorated
with raised La Tène (so-called ‘Early Celtic Art’) design.
The wires in each of the 8 ropes are twisted in the
same clockwise direction, forming a cylinder, expanding
towards where they are fixed to the terminals.
The two ring-shaped terminals are identical in shape
and design. The terminals consist of a hollow lost wax
‘doughnut-shape’ casting with a raised decoration of
La Tène style motifs. Viewed from the front and held in
the hands, one terminal lies slightly behind and higher
than the other.
The areas where the wire ‘ropes’ were cast onto the
terminals are marked by two collars: one plain, and
one plain at the rear but around the front side is an
ornamented zone. The front and sides of each terminal
ring are ornamented with zones of raised curving ovals,
trumpets and peltas, with a single circle containing two
raised pellets against a filled ‘basket weave’ background
at the heart of each zone. A similar device is used to
highlight the inside of the main tripartite ‘void’ at the
centre of the design when looking at the terminals
head on.
Internal diameter: 130mm; weight: 699.24g. Surface
analysis of the terminals and wire indicated a metal
contents of approx: 67% gold and 32% silver. The
black deposits on small areas of the torc are composed
of silver oxides, appearing to occur over worn raised
parts of the decoration on the terminals, and over a
large ancient cut on the inside of one of the terminals
and over small parts of the coiled strands at the rear
of the torc: the location on other torcs where there
is sometimes evidence for stress fractures caused by
opening and closing the torc when it was put on and
taken off.
Discussion: This is an example of a well-known Iron
Age object type; a multi-strand ring terminal torc with
raised ‘Snettisham style’ decoration. Similar types of
torcs have been previously found in northwest Norfolk.
This torc is very similar in shape, size and style of
decoration to these examples, especially the
Sedgeford torc.
Disposition: Newark Heritage Services.
J D HILL
83. Gayton area, Norfolk: Iron Age gold torc wire
fragment (2005 T544) pAs ID: Nms-35C242
Found by Mr S Brown while metal-detecting in August
2005; disclaimed, returned to finder.
J D HILL
II) oThER objECTs
84. Chiseldon, Wiltshire:
Iron Age base-metal vessels (2005 T178)
Date: c. 800–1 BC
Discovery: Found by Mr P Hyams while metaldetecting
in November 2004, who also sent a fragment
for analysis by Dr Peter Northover at the University of
Oxford. Excavation and block lifting of the vessels was
undertaken by Wessex Archaeology with the Portable
Antiquities Scheme and the British Museum.
Description: At least 12 different vessels or cauldrons
were found, the final number being uncertain until all
the vessels are removed from their soil blocks and the
fragmentary vessels put back together. The majority
are made of thin sheets of bronze and appear to have
hemispherical bases. Several of the bodies of vessels
may be made of both bronze and iron components.
Where visible, these cauldrons have mouths
approximately 60–80cm wide.
Many of the vessels have iron ring handles, and some
an iron rod to support the rim. One of the vessels may
have originally been made of wood and bound with
metal. Although most of the vessels retain something
of their overall shape, all have been crushed to differing
degrees and all are cracked and fragmented.
The vessels were found in a large pit, apparently
carefully arranged, most in an upright position. In
addition, other associated artefacts and animal bones
were recovered from the pit, including two cow skulls,
other bones and some fragments of pottery.
Discussion: This unusual group of cauldrons is almost
certainly of Iron Age date, indicated by the associated
Iron Age pottery, and lack of associated Roman pottery,
which would have been expected in the backfill of the
pit due to a Roman settlement in the area, if the find
had been later. The analysis of the vessel copper-alloy
fragment also revealed trace metals that pinpoint
a prehistoric date, and the iron components of the
vessels rules out the Bronze Age. Finally, certain of the
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