Cloth Seal, James II, Alnage, Fleur-de-lis
Cloth Seal, James II, Alnage, Fleur-de-lis, Image & Found by Axel Gravertje.
Found in the Netherlands, ?mm.
Off-centred stamp (section of border with edge of letter?) // head facing right, OF ENG LAND around // fleur-de-lis 1 1/2 to sides (top) // blank (split rivet not separated)
This a complete four disc alnage seal of James II. The inscription OF ENG LAND has the 'Charles II type*' head of James II in the gap. Similar post-reformation seals can be seen in Egan, 1994, Lead cloth seals and related items in the British Museum, British Museum Occasional paper 93, figure 27. See especially number 137 for the portrait comparison.
*Charles II, James II and William III all had very similar portraits on the cloth seals from their reigns, making it difficult to tell them apart. One distinctive feature that I have noticed to often occur on James II seals is the vertical lines on the neck - see BSG.CS.00724 and BSG.CS.00722.
The numbers either side of the fleur-de-lis, 1 1/2 (d) represent the amount of alnage tax paid on the cloth. The 1 above the 2 is not clear on this example but see BSG.CS.00244 for a clearer example.
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