Late medieval artefact found in Llanbadoc declared as treasure, could have belonged to knight
This article originally appeared on Culture24.
Welsh or English knight could have owned sword around time of medieval battle fought by Owain Glyndwr's men
This late medieval silver inscribed mount, dating from more than 300 years ago, has been declared treasure by HM Coroner for Gwent© National Museum WalesA slightly concave curvature and an invocation to the Virgin in Latin and Low German - also seen on finger rings from the period - feature on the rivet-holed mount, discovered near Llanbadoc, in Monmouthshire, and reported to the National Roman Legion Museum in Caerleon.
“I’ve been metal detecting for 15 years,” says Michael Beirne, a Fabrication and Welding Engineering student at the Coleg Gwent City of Newport campus.
“This has probably been my best find. I’d like to think that the sword, which it may have been part of, belonged to a Welsh or English knight.”
The silver mount bears two incomplete inscriptions engraved against a recessed diagonally hatched background. There are two incomplete holes, suggesting that it once formed part of a composite object.
Curators at National Museum Wales say the surviving fragment represents half its original length, leaving room on the missing section for another short motto or an enamelled shields of arms.
The museum group hopes to use Heritage Lottery Fund money to buy the hoard follow an independent valuation.
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Three museums in Wales to see archaeology at
Egypt Centre, Swansea
The Egypt Centre houses the largest collection of Egyptian antiquities in Wales. The museum officially opened in September 1998, and has more than 5,000 items in the collection.
Old Bell Museum, Montgomery
Eleven rooms house displays illustrating the long social and civic history of the ancient County Town of Montgomeryshire. There are permanent exhibitions relating to the medieval and Norman castles and their archaeological excavations, with excellent scale models of both.
Tarbat Discovery Centre, Ross-shire
The site of the only Pictish monastic settlement found in Scotland to date, the centre is a museum situated in an old church in the beautiful coastal village of Portmahomack. A total of six churches have existed within the building, the earliest of which dates back to 8th century and the Picts.
