Colchester Archaeological Report 2: The Roman small finds

stepped strip mount. The upper two steps have been
abraded and polished. The rough lower step has been partly
cut away at the ends and on one long side. It may, of course,
never have been present on this long side (see 4369). There
are traces of an incised line along and beyond each wall of
the top step. This may be a marker line cut at an early stage
of the work to indicate where the steps should be. Length
86.0mm, width 28.0mm (ibid, fig 2, 10).
4371 Fig 190 SF BUC 650, C1331 L2. Late Period 1 or Period 2. A
section of a long bone sawn at each end and cut and partly
rasped on the reverse. The upper surface has been trimmed
with a knife. The dimensions of this slightly waisted piece,
86.0mm long, 29.0mm wide, suggest that it is almost
certainly a rough for a stepped strip mount (ibid, fig 2, 12).
4372 Fig 190 SF BUC 1758, C1342 L2. Late Period 1 or Period 2. A
sawn-off end section of a long bone. There are traces of knife
strokes on the upper surface. Probably an offcut produced in
the manufacture of strip mounts. Length 71.0mm,
maximum width 35.5 mm.
4373 Fig 190 SF BUC 804, C1595. Unstratified. A fragment
possibly from an unfinished piece of stepped inlay. There is a
rough groove along one edge and two other cuts towards the
centre. The upper surface has been rasped. One end has
been broken off recently. Length 51.5 mm, width 22.5 mm.
Convex mounts with spool-and-bead decoration
(Fig 191; 4374-4379).
These mounts would have been produced on a lathe
from the central, almost circular, part of a metapodial
which was then sawn in half along its length.
4374 Fig 191 SF BUC 611, C1244 L4. Modern. In two pieces. One
end is sawn, the other has been smoothed and polished.
Length 24.0 mm.
4375 Fig 191 SF BUC 635, C1281 L2. Late Period 1 or Period 2.
Length 42.5mm.
4376 Fig 191 SF BUC 629, C1292 L4. Modern. Length 41.0mm.
One end has been smoothed and polished. The other is
broken (ibid, fig 2, 17).
4377 Fig 191 SF BUC 669, C1308 L2. Late Period 1 or Period 2.
Length 18.0mm. Both ends have been smoothed and
polished.
4378 Fig 191 SF BUC 662, C1309 L2. Late Period 1 or Period 2.
Length 12.0 mm.
4379 Fig 191 SF BUC 1759, C483 G258. Grave fill. Period 2. A
lathe-turned offcut from the end of a ?metapodial. Probably
from the end of a spool-and-bead decorated mount. Length
19.0mm.
Miscellaneous mounts (Fig 192; 4380-4383)
4380 Fig 192 SF BUC 653/740, C1330/1552 L2. Late Period 1 or
Period 2. A sawn rough-out of a bird in flight, with the wings
curving on a downwards beat. At both the throat and the
nape a hole has been drilled in an effort to prevent the bone
cracking along the grain when the piece was sawn. This was
unsuccessful at the throat, and, after being sawn, the object
has broken on a line running to the hole at the nape. Length
70.5 mm, width 65.5 mm (ibid, fig 2, 13).
4381 Fig 192 SF BUC 674, C1357 L2. Late Period 1 or Period 2.
Possibly a rough-out for a lobate leaf, perhaps similar to
4364 and 4365. The piece has been broken recently.
Length 41 5 mm.
4382 Fig 192 SF BUC 736, C1450 G405. Grave fill. Period 2. A
mount, probably originally rectangular (43.0 by 36.0mm),
with stilted semicircular cut-outs on two opposing sides,
and concave-sided V-shaped cut-outs on the other two
opposing sides.
4383 Fig 192 SF BUC 749, C1562 L2. Late Period 1 or Period 2. A
mount of two angular ivy leaves linked by a disc. The upper
surface has been abraded smooth and polished. Length
76.5mm, width 26.0mm (ibid, fig 1, 9).
Lathe-turned pegs (Fig 193; 4384-4386)
4384 Fig 193 SF BUC 513, C946 L1. Period 1 or 2. An unfinished
lathe-turned ?peg, roughly cut to shape before being centred
158
Fig 191 Convex mounts from Butt Road (1:1J
on the lathe. The marks of the lathe stock centres are visible
at each end. Length 56.0mm, maximum width 11.0mm.
4385 Fig 193 SF BUC 672, C1372 G384. Grave fill. Period 2. A
similar piece, over-cut at the narrower end so that the
motion of the lathe has not brought all the circumference of
the peg up against the tool used to trim the surface. The
lathe centre marks are visible on each end. Length 61.5 mm,
maximum width 10.5 mm (ibid, fig 2, 16).
4386 Fig 193 SF BUC 654, C1329 L2. Late Period 1 or Period 2. A
possible knife-trimmed rough-out for a peg similar to the
above. This piece is unlikely to be a fragment of lathe waste
as both the previous pieces show centre marks at each end,
indicating that their length was decided upon before, not
after, they were turned. Length 44.0mm, maximum width
14.0mm.
Double-ended ?pegs (Fig 194; 4387-4389). See
ibid, 284-5 for a discussion of the method of
manufacture and the identification of these objects.
The ?pegs exhibit cut and broken faces, as well as
inner and outer natural bone surface.
4387 Fig 194 SF BUC 676, C1353 L2. Late Period 1 or Period 2.
Length 80.0mm, width 8.0mm.
4388 Fig 194 SF BUC 682, C1356 L2. Late Period 1 or Period 2.
Length 92.0mm, width 8.0mm.