Cloth Seal, Alnage, Thistle, Image by StuE, Found by Blue_yeti
Found in South-East England, 15mm, 2.9g.
The rivet and part of the rove discs from an alnage seal showing a thistle with R to side (the initial of the monarch at the other side is missing) all in a short rayed circle with inscription around most of which is missing. The other disc has 40 in raised figures.
This is from a series of county seals begun in the reign of James I with a crown-over-thistle design on one side, and often the weight of the cloth in pounds on the other, 40lbs in this case. See:- PROVENANCED LEADEN CLOTH SEALS by GEOFFREY EGAN, Sub-Department of Medieval Archaelogy, University College, University of London. submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, 1987. p.150 "Lancashire Seals. No Lancashire portcullis seals, as described in Statute 8 Eliz. I c. 12 of 1566, have been recorded. The county seals thought (from the use of Roman numerals) to be the earliest recorded probably date to the late 16th- or early 17th century: crown over rose, LANKASHIRE around (crude engraving) //(Roman numerals). On the second discs one example has XXXIIII, and two have XXXVI, presumably indicating the weights of the cloths in pounds (cf. 1566 Statute). ... From the reign of James I (cf. Buckinghamshire no. 3938 for dating) are seals with: crown over thistle, IR to sides COM: LANCESTERY around //(Arabic numerals, 29 & 32 have been recorded)."
