Exchanging Medieval Material Culture Studies on archaeology and ...

60
Geoff Egan
Several have been found in London58; one comes from Deal
(Kent)59. Another, found at the American colonial site of
Jamestown, Virginia60 may well have been on a textile shipped
through London. Similar but not identical devices are shown
on a matrix used for the local grands scéaux for cloths61.
3.13 Wervik
Th e import of textiles from this small town are attested by seals
found widely in England (fi g. 2: 5). Imprints from the fabric
that have registered on the inner surfaces of several seals suggest
that Wervik’s ‘carpetene’62 were very coarse, extremely
loosely woven fabrics. Th e recorded stamps are all essentially
the same, though several diff erent matrices were used (the last
letter of the placename is consistently omitted):
wervi (blackletter) // double rose
Th e majority have been found in London63. Another comes
from Salisbury (Wiltshire)64 and there is one from Gainsborough
(Lincolnshire)65.
3.14 Ypres/Ieper
Several local medieval seals for the local woollens have been
excavated at Ypres itself – at least three with the city’s badge
of the double-armed (patriarchal) cross of Lorraine66. Th e
textiles woven at this Flemish centre have left a relatively
modest trace in England that has so far been recognised as
relating to the city’s considerable medieval trade across the
North Sea.
Th e earliest seals, from the 14th century, are relatively small:
mitred head of bishop facing // two-armed (patriarchal) cross
One was found near Whissonsett (Norfolk) and another has
turned up at Gainsborough (Lincolnshire)67.
Slightly larger seals found on the continent have s o to the
sides of the bishop’s head68. A seal with a diff erent stamp,
found at New Romney (Kent) (fi g. 2: 6)69, is presumably later,
perhaps from the end of the medieval period or into the earlymodern
era:
two-armed cross with y p r e between arms // lion rampant
A further example has the full arms of the city (cross vairé, on
a chief a two-armed cross) on one side and part of a legend
58 Egan forthcoming a: abo92 context
assigned to the last quarter of the 17th century;
MOL acc. nos. 87.49 & 87.99/3.
59 Dover Museum acc. no. O.2122.
60 u.s. Parks Dept. acc. no. J-29791.
61 Fierlandt 1853, pl. facing 245 - see above.
62 Kerridge 1985, 222.
63 Egan 1995a, 112-113 & 194 fi g. 43 no. 327.
64 Idem 2001a, 73 & 85 fi g. 26 no. 163.
65 Idem 2006b.
66 De Wilde & Ervynck 1995, 13; De Wilde & Van
Bellingen 1998, 67 fi g. 15. A further three with the
lion rampant may be local issues or they could be
from elsewhere in Flanders.
67 Egan 2006b, 98.
68 Kvizikevičius 1998, see below.
69 Fig. 10B.
70 Mitchiner 1991, 952 no. 2951.
71 Ibid., no. 2952, also a London fi nd.
72 Liebgott 1975, 38 fi g. 6.
73 Kvizikevičius 1998, 436 fi gs. 5-8; Endrei & Egan
1982, 49 fi g. 1, the claim that these are the earliest
known issues from Tournai no longer holds.
74 Mitchiner 1991, 949 nos. 2942-3a.
which would almost certainly have been leids gvet – ‘goods
of Leiden’ in the Netherlands around saltire keys (the arms of
that city) on the other70. Th is curious double attribution may
perhaps relate to cloths woven in one centre and fi nished in the
other. Presumably from Ypres (though the letter could perhaps
indicate Tournai – perhaps a similar phenomenon as for the
preceding item) is another London fi nd71:
lombardic letter T // two-armed cross
Other seals assigned to Ypres have been published: from
Viborg, Denmark72; Vilnius in Lithuania and Hungary73. Th ree
seals from Lille (France) have also been erroneously assigned to
Ypres74. Of less certain attribution are two seals with a tower
(perhaps suggesting Tournai) and an ab ligature found at
Salisbury (Wiltshire)75, though these appear to be paralleled by
a London fi nd which may have the arms of Ypres (this remains
to be elucidated).
3.15 Possible Belgian Seals – Uncertain
Provenances
A possible Flanders or Tournai seal found in London (fi g. 2: 7)
has a lion seated under an ornate canopy on one side, and a
tower over the cipher 49 (=1549?), all within a multiply lobed
border on the other. Th e fi rst device is very similar to the gold
lion heaume and lion d’or coins, respectively issued by Louis de
Male as count of Flanders 1436-1484 and by Philip the Good
as count of Holland 1433-146776.
A few small medieval cloth seals found in London, with fl ans
similar in form to the earliest dumpy Diest, Flanders and
Mechelen ones noted above, have not yet been identifi ed, e.g.
those with dv (or w) with a suspension mark on one stamp,
and a raised hand on the other77 (fi g. 2: 8). Th ese are perhaps
from Diksmuide.
Seals with lions rampant may be from Flanders, e.g. perhaps
those with (?)a G-like motif on a stand on the other disc78.
Th ese await future research before it can be determined
whether or not they are from the area of modern Belgium.
A later seal with a lion rampant on one side, and on the other
a cross on stepped pedestal, all within a large (?)d (which
appears to have a loop curving to clasp the cross shaft ) may
be related79.
Ten large seals with lions rampant, all but one found in London,
may well be from the area of modern Belgium. Th ere seem to
75 Egan 2001a, 74 & 86 fi g. 27 nos. 170-171.
76 Friedberg 1976, 54 & 326.
77 Egan 1995a, 113 & fi g. 44 no. 329. Another has
been found at Greifswald Market in Germany
(Prof. G. Mangelsdorf pers. comm.).
78 Egan 2001a, 75 & 86 fi g. 27 no. 172.
79 Idem forthcoming a; abo92 from
a late 17th-century context.