File:BROOCH (FindID 770835).jpg

An incomplete Roman copper alloy Hod Hill type brooch dating to the first century AD. It is missing the pin, and the upper part of its body. The brooch measures 31.75mm in length and is 11.13mm at its widest part. It weighs 2.78g. The section extant is that from which the catch-plate extends inwards and includes an oval finial. It has a bright green patina in places and there is evidence of silvering.

In this case the upper part of the brooch has broken off at an early date, just above the top of the catch-plate and above a collar-like horizontal panel and ridge (7.75mm in width), the latter with a rope-like pattern upon it. Below that the body of the brooch extends outwards like the shoulders of a vase and then narrows, tapering over a length of 20mm from 11.13mm to 3.25mm just above the flat oval finial (6.39mm in width).

The catch-plate extends the full length of the fragment and projects inwards 11.54mm at its greatest width. The pin curl is missing.

Hod Hill type brooches were very popular in Britain and a wide range of variants are known. In "Late Iron Age and Roman Brooches", Worrell (1998, p9) notes that Hod Hill brooches are closely related to Aucissa brooches from which they probably developed. They occur widely on the continent, particularly in Gaul and the Rhineland (ibid.). The main centre of production was probably Gaul, but some were probably made in Britain (ibid.). They are often associated with military sites and probably introduced to Britain by the Roman army, although they are also found on non-military sites (ibid.). Hod Hill brooches are known from post-conquest depositions and it is likely they went out of use c.70 AD (Bayley & Butcher 2004, p.153).

CF Hattatt p322 fig181 no848 for a very similar lower section.