Copper-alloy work box

Bronze work box, height 6.5cm. Body of rolled sheet bronze, ends overlapping and fastened by bronze rivets, base hammered over into lip to which basal disc, slightly domed, secured by 8 bronze rivets. Lid top also domed and similarly secured to side strip which is overlapping and also hammered out at top to fit lid top. The lid hinged: riveted to side and edge of lid are two halves of little hinge-mechanism, bronze, each secured by 2 rivets (bronze), each doubled and cut out to interlock and make slot for an iron hinge-pin to go through and hold them (now broken).These hinges on line of seam of box. Similar hinge-attachments on opposite side made fastening of box-lid and these fastened or unfastened by means of bronze pin with pierced disc-head, attached to chain with wire figure-of-eight links, attached to bronze staple at middle of one side. Box itself fastened to another chain from belt (now lost) by two sub-triangular plates riveted to sides over seam and over lid-hinge, and made of piece of shaped doubled bronze sheet spread out a base, but with fold sticking out at back and shaped to make another sub-triangular piece hinged to it by another iron bolt. This had loop for chain.Body decorated with two bands of repoussé dot decoration in stepped pattern between single borders; lid and base have nearly identical cross with forked ends inside ring.Faussett notes that there was another chain and pin on the other side (that side broke - Faussett illustrates it), but no sign of it now. The box contained silken strings in two sizes, raw silk; wool and short hair; perforated seeds or beads of vegetable substance like seeds of Plant called \Marvel of Peru\")."Five different types of thread from this \relic box\" analysed by Coatsworth & Fitzgerald 2001 See under \"box contents\". – D.H."