Terrets from the Westhall hoard
Iron Age AD 1-70
From Westhall, Suffolk, England
Iron Age heirlooms belonging to a Roman Briton?
The terret, or rein ring is a distinctive Iron Age object found
only in Britain. These two were found with seven others in a hoard
of metal objects. The hoard had been packed inside a bronze bowl
before being buried in the ground. It included Roman coins and, as
the latest coin was made in the reign of Faustina (born AD
125-176), the hoard must have been buried in AD 138 or later. This
is almost a hundred years after the Romans conquered south-eastern
England, and sixty years after Boudica's unsuccessful revolt. It is
very likely that these terrets were made about AD 1-70, probably
before the Roman Conquest and Boudica's revolt. At this time
decorated metal horse harnesses and parts of chariots or carts were
very common in parts of Britain, especially Norfolk and Suffolk.
This was the home of the Iceni.
These terrets show how local metal-workers and enamellers
combined techniques and designs to achieve a quality unsurpassed,
even by contemporary Roman craftspeople. The large terret is one of
a set of five with the same decoration on each piece of the set.
The small terret is one of a set of three. Both terrets are inlaid
with red glass and were decorated in the same way: a scroll pattern
was drawn in a clay mould. After the metal was poured in and left
to solidify, the mould was broken. The inside of the pattern was
roughly chiselled out of the cast terret and the hollowed-out areas
filled with softened red glass. A blow-pipe was used to spot-heat
the glass to give a good fit in the sharp angles and narrow
constrictions of the design. The same decoration is repeated on
each side of the terret.
S. James and V. Rigby, Britain and the Celtic Iron Ag (London, The British Museum Press, 1997)
I.M. Stead, Celtic art in Britain before t (London, The British Museum Press, 1987, revised edition 1997)