File:Medieval Padlock Mechanism (FindID 262284).jpg

English: A complete cast copper-alloy barrel or box padlock spring mechanism of Medieval date. The mechanism is U-shaped in profile with a rectangular lower arm and cylindrical upper arm. The lower arm is rectangular in profile and tapers slightly towards its tip. It has extensive tool marks on all surfaces and a small cylindrical copper-alloy rivet attaches rectangular copper-alloy leaf springs to each side. At the point where the object begins to curve the lower arm has a prominent square collar that tapers into the cylindrical bend of the mechanism. There is a projecting triangular suspension loop with small circular perforation extending from the outer edge of the collar. The upper arm is cylindrical in form tapering to a point and has slight faceting with toolmarks visible on all faces. The entire object measures 31.29mm in length, 16.55mm in height, and weighs 5.43g. This is the internal mechanism for a Medieval box or barrel padlock. The rectangular arm with leaf springs would have been inserted into the lock itself and the pointed upper arm into a cylindrical receptacle on the upper surface of the lock, enabling secure closing of the padlock. Similar lock mechanisms are noted from Medieval Winchester in Biddle's Types A and B padlocks that indicate a date in the 11th-15th centuries AD for the current example (see especially Biddle, 1991: pp. 1001-1003, nos. 3658-3659).