My hunt for parallels for this tricky to identify object, and especially those that were indeed horse trappings, led to period pony armour and strap fitments.
The little spikes that I'd seen depicted on the heads of horses in illustrations of medieval jousters turned out to be part of the chanfron (or also spelled chaffron, chamfron, champion, chamfron, chamfrein, champron, and shaffron) — the armour that protected the head of the horse from the blow of the lance.
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| https://finds.org.uk/database/artefacts/record/id/856910 |
Then an extensive search of the Portable Antiquities Scheme Database threw up a number of period British roundels of similar large size. Almost all candidates were composite specimens with separate assembled parts but often with differing means of attachment to the host object.
However, only a few examples shared many features in common with my own.
Above is an example that does. It hails from Surrey, and is very similar to the example from Essex mentioned in my previous post on this subject. It too is of three part construction—the faceplate and integral frame, backplate and single central rivet. All components are of copper alloy excepting the rivet which is iron.
The rest are listed here.
I think that these examples could all be separated into two classes by the means of attachment alone. Some have three or four rivet points arranged around the circumference, and others just the one at centre.
Now.
'Host objects'?
What they might have been is a matter for conjecture...
That they were attached is certain — but to what is not!
But means of attachment always helps somewhat.
Egan and Pritchard in 'Medieval Dress Accessories' view these as either part of sword belts or as martingale brasses. A huge gap of confidence here and they cannot make their minds up and for unsurprising reasons...
No doubt, that in their narrowing down of possibilities, they had also viewed such confounding things as the period illustration above that shows us a number of alternative uses for our roundels.
We have here the shaffron, the bridle bit, and the right arm and hand of the knight shown at right.
All could have possessed roundels!
My instinct is that that those roundels we have seen here with multiple rivets (and often roves) were attached to flexible leather straps or belts, whilst those with a long single central rivet were attached through a solid metal plate or even a wooden plank.
In conclusion
My hunt for answers to the "what exactly is this" question has lead so far toward roundels that could be from various parts of horse or human armour or were a dress accessory — a knight's belt mount to be precise. However, that it was once 'attached' to a sentient being and not to a wooden object of some sort — a chest perhaps, or even a vehicle...?
Not even that is certain — as yet!
I have come across only the one British find of an unequivocal 'chamfrein'. and it argues with all the other candidates here for the title. This definitely was from the horses head. It is really large — 8cm or so. My roundel is quite a large item and so are the others discussed here but this is simply huge by comparison with all of them and this fact must be taken into account.
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| Widworthy |
Also, its construction is quite unlike the roundels discussed so far in this series. It is not nearly so elaborate or as fine as those. They are all jewellers work — but this is armourer or even blacksmith work.
There's a piece of thin sheet metal that has been worked to form a circular plate with an octagonal decorative scheme of ridge and furrow — just like a partially folded umbrella.
There's a central conical boss, which, from the illustration above, seems to be soldered to two lengths of wire — though it may be one length bent double. And at reverse, a rove to securely fasten the piece to the head armour.
This British example (from Widworthy) is identical in form and construction to many continental examples, and especially those made in Italy. However, this particular form was not the only one in use. Other types, smaller and more compact, have been seen in my image trawling...
And so the search continues!
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| Walters Art Museum Italian example |
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