File:Late Medieval, Buckle plate (FindID 394073-285458).jpg

English: Part of a cast copper alloy buckle plate from a Late Medieval single loop trapezoidal buckle, dating from c.1350 to c. 1500.

The find consists of the front part of a decorative folded buckle plate. The left hand edge demonstrates two rectangular projections (each approx 4.5 mm wide), which would have been folded around the central spindle (bar) of the buckle. It would have been a type of folded buckle plate which had a slot present for the pin. The projections have broken at the point of folding. The upper and lower edges of the plate have been recessed to allow for the frame.

The plate has four rivet holes, located in each corner. One domed copper alloy rivet is present in the upper left hand hole, above the projections for the hinge.

The buckle plate has been decorated, probably with gold leaf. There are three lines inscribed, one going from upper left to bottom right, one from upper right to bottom left, and the third horizontally across the middle of the plate. They meet in the middle to form a star like design. A small circular depression is present at the centre of these lines. The lines appear to separate into two when they reach the rivet holes towards the edge of the plate. Most of the gold leaf decoration has come off, leaving the green patina of the copper alloy visible. There are a couple of points where the patina has flaked off, leaving a dark reddish brown metal of the alloy present.

The underside of the buckle plate, which would have been touching the belt leather is plain. A green patina covers the majority of the surface apart from a strip between the left rivet holes, where it has flaked off, leaving the dark reddish brown metal of the alloy present.

Similar buckle plates have been recorded from several other sites, although none with the same style of decoration. No. 172 in Whitehead (2003, pp30) is a good comparative example.

The buckle plate is 28.19mm long, 28.03mm wide, 1.91mm thick and weighs 2.8 grams.

Reference:

Whitehead, R. 2003. Buckles 1250-1800. Greenlight Publishing.

NB also compare BH-BDAE9E, which is a very similar object but likely to be a suspension mount from a horse-harness pendant.