Casgliadau Arlein

Fragment of a cast decorative vessel mount of Late Iron Age stage V (Stead 1995 ) type. The main attachment plate decoration consists of a volute motif terminating with a spiral surrounding a small perforation 3.2mm in diameter at one end and encircling a slightly larger perforation 4.7mm in diameter at the other and terminating with a trumpet motif. This perforation is surrounded by a flat circular area which, most likely, accomodated a large decorative rivet. The mount extends on one side enclose what may have been a large rivet along the central axis of the piece. The perforation has uneven edges and is surrounded by crude decoration consisting of two deeply incised irregular concentric circles, at odds with the flowing pattern of the main attachment. Further incised lines above this suggest the missing areas formed a symmetrical design. The mount is slightly concave along both axes, although this may be a result of breakage or bending, seems unlikely to be part of a tankard handle so may have been a fitting on a decorated bowl. A tankard handle from Caerwent (Simpson 1972) while not an identical object type displays comparable decoration, including the offset perforations, one surrounded by a circular area to take a large rivet.