File:2006 T281, Post-Medieval silver thimble from Markyate, Hertfordshire (FindID 216045).jpg

English: post-medieval silver thimble

Squashed and flattened silver thimble, domed top missing, plain edging. The body covered with regular waffle-shaped indentations applied on a lathe, in the centre a transverse band of engraved ornament with lozenges containing rectangles of indentations interspersed with four-petalled flowerheads (roses?) On the reverse, at what would have been the lower edge, maker’s mark DA.

Mid to late 17th C type as frequently reported through the Treasure Act. Silver thimbles were used increasingly by the European nobility and gentry during the 17th Century but surviving examples are rare given that thimbles were much used and, when worn, were likely to have been melted down for their bullion value. In England, silver thimbles are documented as having been donated by women on the Parliamentary side to be melted down during the Civil War. Even later 17th Century English silver thimbles are rare, with few pieces in the national collections in The British Museum and the Museum of London.

In terms of age and as the object contains a minimum of 10% precious metal it qualifies as Treasure under the stipulations of the Treasure Act 1996.