Casgliadau Arlein

A small gold brooch with ‘lozenge’-shaped frame, set obliquely, made from two conjoined gold strips with punched edges, carefully folded to give the impression of a double line of cast beading on front and reverse.

Where the gently arced sides of the frame meet, the folded fleur-de lys of the frame supports combinations of pellets (three had four, the pin rest had five). The upper fleur de lys is perforated to take the pin head. Each cluster has a central gold rivet for a missing setting (possible pearl), all now projecting slightly from the back, suggesting that they were once slightly taller (the upper ends are now rounded from wear).

In the centre of the outer side of each frame side is a tubular collet (some now misshapen and empty), one of which retains a sunken opaque cabochon turquoise green ‘emerald’. There may originally have been two settings of a contrasting colour (possibly bluish-green and red). The pin has a wrap-around head and flattened D cross-section, and there is a short transverse bar at the junction with the shaft.

Similar examples are known from Ireland (eg a copper-alloy example excatvated in Cornmarket/Francis Street, Dublin; Deevy 1998, RB 116). It conforms to Deevy’s ‘Class 6b: ring brooches with multiple collets (ibid, 19). Square and lozenge-shaped frames on brooches were also made in copper alloy, for example, one from St Nicholas, Vale of Glamorgan (Redknap 2003, fig. 5b).

The form of the Cardigan Community brooch suggests a late thirteenth - or fourteenth-century date.