File:Medieval lantern (FindID 427516).jpg

English: An incomplete and rather squashed sheet copper alloy Medieval (1250-1400) lantern, now in eight pieces. It would originally have been cylindrical in shape. It is missing a door (probably of transparent horn) to the front, several binding strips, a handle, base and top. It measures c.197mm in length (185mm without rectangular projection) and 121.02mm in (squashed) width, and weighs 113.16g. The patina overall is smooth and shiny with patches that are rougher both on the inside and outside surfaces.

The largest fragment of the lantern (c.147x121.02mm) consists of just over half of the left edge (if viewed from front) with the decorative panel above the missing door, and reaching across the middle to the lower right side. It has a horizontal binding strip (across the centre back of the lantern) 9.20mm wide and 0.54mm thick, held in place with a rivet at either end (c.1.5mm diameter). The central portion of this (6.42mm wide) has traces of a fixant (solder?) for an additional (and perhaps decorative) strip - perhaps the separate narrow strip described below.
At one end of this strip (along the front edge) is a double vertical strip (double thickness) 4.06mm wide. The top-most strip has a central groove 0.67x0.71mm decorated inside with diagonal incised lines. The double-strip is fixed in place with four rivets (over 101.63mm), and appears to be broken across a fifth. Between the fifth and fourth rivet, and opposite the end of the central binding strip, is a latch. This consists of a rectangular plate 11.44x4.38x1.65mm and rivetted with a single rivet to the vertical binding strip at one end. Sitting at the other end is the handle, a globular knop 5.66mm in diameter and 3.18mm thick, presumably rivetted in place. This is still moveable a small distance, perhaps 90 degrees of a circle. At the other end of the vertical strip, the top, a rectangular plate 10.95mm wide and 0.91mm thick is rivetted (3mm diameter) to the inside (now sandwiched between the squashed sides). It extends c.10mm above the top edge of the lantern and is probably c.20mm in length. It has an in situ rivet in the opposite end (2.35mm and above the top of the lantern), and the lantern has an additional rivet hole, and presumably a handle would have been attached here. The vertical binding stops c.5.5mm short of the top edge where a shadow of this width flanks the entire top edge (apparent on other fragments) and suggests a lost binding strip.
Beneath the vertical binding strip (to a width of 11.7mm) is a slightly bent 49.68x40.73x0.66mm separate openwork plate, with its rivet attachment in place (1.74mm) behind the vertical binding strip. It is additionally fixed with the first and second rivets of the vertical binding strip. This openwork plate is roughly triangular in shape with right angles along the top and side edge. The hypotenuse edge is crenellated in a series of arched curves of varying sizes. At the centre is an openwork quatrefoil 13.5x13.5mm with a punched circle in each angle (1.5mm diameter), surrounded by a 16.54mm diameter circle of punched circles c.1mm in diameter. The openwork plate is broken at the corner furthest from the body of the lantern at the end of the crenellated edge. The top edge carries a c.4.5mm wide trace of solder from a missing binding strip.
Below the central horizontal binding strip on the other side of the lamp is the shadow of a 4.7mm wide binding strip with traces of solder and two 1.2mm diameter rivet holes.

The next fragment has jagged edges but connects with the first fragment and the third at the top edge of the lantern. It measures 63.2165.93x0.64mm and is slightly squashed. It has a shadow of a lost binding strip 5.07mm wide with traces of solder, flanking the top edge (and connecting with that of the first and third fragments).

The third fragment (44.24x68.99mm) connects with the second and the fourth, but to the front also to the first. This fragment is the opposite corner to the first fragment with a separate triangular openwork plate attached by two rivets along the top edge (12.81mm beneath the vertical binding strip) and further secured with additional rivets from the vertical binding strip. It is also decorated with an openwork quatrefoil within a ring of punched circles. The furthest corner of the crenellated hypotenuse edge is broken and matched the break of the first fragment at this point, to reveal a central aperture of the lantern 63.26mm wide/ in diameter and now squashed inwards. The aperture is of an arch with a trefoil cut-out at the top and two uprights at either side. The top edge has traces of solder c.4.5mm wide from a missing binding strip.
Where the body of the lamp has curved round behind the vertical binding strip is a large rivet hole 2.72mm in diameter, just below the solder line flanking the top edge.
The vertical binding strip has the same arrangement as that on the first fragment, and damage shows that the bottom-most 'underneath' strip is plain and 0.65mm thick. It has one visible rivet close to the top and two further holes where the top strip has been lost further down. Roughly 34mm from the top edge is a hinge, attached to the vertical binding strip between the in situ rivet and the missing strip below. It has three rivet holes although from the reverse only two seem to have been used. Both still have in situ rivets, the top most of which also pierces the openwork plate. The moveable part of the hinge projects to the left if viewed from the front and is semi-circular with a short, wide triangle extending from the centre. This also has three rivet holes along its straight edge, only one of which contains a rivet (to the reverse). Additionally this has a double plate, seemingly curved around the hinge bar itself. Perhaps the rivet 'holes' are a decorative feature as they are not apparent on the reverse of the plate.

The fourth fragment joins the first, second and third and measures 34.38x37.62x0.45mm, running up to the bend of the right hand edge. It would have adjoined the damaged area underneath the missing vertical binding strip.

Fragment five consists of the bottom left hand corner and measures 77.79x86.77mm. The reverse has clear, regular, longitudinal tooling marks and the bottom edge has traces of a 5mm wide missing binding strip in the form of traces of solder and shadow. At the original vertical edge are two empty rivet holes 1.5mm in diameter. The vertical edge has a 3.87mm wide single strip (probably missing the upper decorative strip) held in place with five rivets, the bottom two of which are situated next to each other. Each rivet head has a groove across the centre, rather like a screw-head. There is a fifth broken rivet hole at the jagged break which joins with the bottom of fragment one. It also joins to fragment six.

Fragment six measures c.76x54.82mm and is the lower right hand corner of the lantern. It has the 5mm wide edge along the bottom with traces of solder, as fragment five does, and also horizontal tooling marks, and the double vertical binding strip with decorated central groove, an extension from fragment three (although the join is not exact). This binding strip is held with two rivets (in situ) and a further two from the hinge, of which the fixed part only remains (a rectangular plate with two arms holding a circular section axis bar of a different copper alloy). Only two rivets are visible to the rear and also to the front - the three 'decorative' rivet holes have been punched over the rivet heads. The lower strip is visible for c.2mm below the upper at the lower end of the lantern, and an in situ rivet just below this would have fixed the horizontal binding strip in place that flanked the bottom edge. To the back of the fragment (the original outside edge) are vertical tooling marks.

Fragment seven is a binding strip curving in profile and measures 114.33x6.13x0.66mm, and one end curves back on itself before a break. The other end has a 1.32mm rivet hole. Both long edges are flanked by a raised lip and groove. The underside is flat and rough. This strip may well have adorned the central horizontal binding strip.

Fragment eight is a rectangular plate 28.50x11.35x0.80mm with an off-centre rivet hole at one end (2.64mm diameter) and two in situ rivets at the other, one in each corner (c.3.5mm diameter). One of these holds in place a fragment 9.26x7.79x0.52mm, possibly a piece of binding strip or handle, with a 1.43mm wide strip of solder along the complete (long) edge. The other rivet holds a small amount of copper alloy beneath it. It is likely this worked like the rectangular projecting plate in fragment one, presumably for a handle.

Compare the lantern, probably of 14th-century date, found at Smithfield in London (Ward-Perkins 1940, fig. 58, no. 1, A1366; Egan 1998, fig. 118, p. 150-1).