After the special artefact featured in July we are back to the more modest this month with a rather corroded handle terminal of a scale tang late medieval to early post medieval knife. The handle terminal is comprised of two sub-square copper alloy plates with curved ends that sandwich a remnant of the iron knife tang between.
One plate has a central circular depression which taken with a slight witness mark on the opposite plate is suggestive of a central rivet that passes through a coincident hole in the tang. Both plates are decorated with engraved images. One side can be interpreted as a left facing cowled head, possibly iconographic; however, the other side cannot be resolved.
The complete example of a knife shown is courtesy of the Victoria and Albert Museum collection; although it is not a close parallel in terms of the handle terminal design it's form and date are broadly indicative of type. Circa 1450-1550 AD. The object was found near Dereham in a cultivated field by an old spring. A full description can be found on the Portable Antiquities website (www.finds.org.uk) using the reference number NMS-833624.