File:Post medieval S shaped fastener (front) (FindID 217369).jpg

English: A cast copper alloy S shaped fastener, probably of post medieval date. In plan, the fastener is broadly S shaped, and in the form of a snake, with one terminal representing the head and the other terminal the tail. The head shaped terminal is closer to the body than the tail, almost forming a closed loop. The fastener is oval shaped in section. On the front of the fastener, the head has raised eyes, and the body and tail are decorated with repeated broadly oval designs, also in relief, representing scales. On the reverse, the broadly straight central section of the body is decorated with transverse ribs, as is the tail (cf. PAS record LANCUM-254732). These are rather feint, and due to the slightly corroded surface it is unclear if this decoration covers the other portions of the reverse. The fastener has a brown and green surface finely pitted surface. There are also some distinct raised uneven brown patches on the brooch. The brooch is generally in good condition, however. The brooch is 42.4mm wide, 19.0mm long, and 4.7mm thick. These are maximum dimensions. The fastener has a mass of 12.34g. In the "Finds Recording Guide", Geake (2001, p36) states that these objects are thought to fasten belts and seem at the moment to date from the late 16th and 17th centuries.