Fluted silver bowl from the Mildenhall treasure
Roman Britain, 4th century AD
Found in Mildenhall, Suffolk
Large bowls of this type were evidently intended to hold water
for washing hands at table.
The chased leaf patterns on the flat panels closely resemble the
pattern on three of the spoons also in the Mildenhall treasure. The
centre of the bowl has geometric decoration in the form of an
interwoven six-pointed star. This motif, like other geometric and
floral designs, was often used decoratively in the Roman period,
but it had no connection with Judaism. The formal adoption of the
Star of David as a Jewish symbol took place only after the medieval
period.
K.S. Painter, The Mildenhall Treasure-1 (London, 1977)