Cloth Seal, Dutch, Deventer, Image & Found by Frank Bjørback.
Found on Senja, Norway, 30mm.
Shield bearing eagle displayed facing left, foliate design on rest of disc // shield bearing arms per fess, inscription? or patterning around
A two disc, double-rivet cloth seal with possible fibres from the cloth still trapped in it.
The distinctive tail on a single headed eagle displayed and per fess arms combination confirm this seal is from Deventer.
"Deventer is an old Hanze and Rijksstad. Because of this, the city carries the eagle of the Holy Roman Empire. The eagle is one-headed, which means that the city was probably awarded a coat of arms before 1250. After that, the eagle became two-headed.
A number of stamps are known of Deventer, the oldest dating from the 13th century (prints from 1268, 1274 and 1352) depicting a ring wall with 3 covered towers, with a (national) apple on top. The eagle appears on a stamp with prints from 1459 and a number of 16th century stamps. The town's counter seal frequently featured a divided shield, probably of silver and red. Both weapons (the eagle and the shared shield) also appear in a depiction of the city from 1550 and in the facade of the new town hall from 1694. The significance of the second weapon is unknown; it can be the coat of arms of the Hanseatic League (compare Lübeck), but it can also be derived from the coat of arms or the banner of the landlord, the bishop of Utrecht. All other stamps of the city then show only the eagle. In the 16th and 17th centuries, the imperial crown appears on the coat of arms on the stamps." Heraldry of the world.
This seal probably dates from late 16th to 17th century.