CLOTH SEAL 813527

Description: A piece of lead with no original edges, a clear transverse bend across the centre although the object has since been straightened. It depicts in raised relief the badge of the City of London, a shield with two incurves along the top edge and a triangular bottom edge; at the centre a cross with an upright dagger in the top left quadrant. D and I can be seen either side of the centre of the cross, above the top edge of the shield. Below the shield and visible to one side only (thanks to the damage) is raised foliate decoration in the form of a narrow stem with a thicker oval leaf to either side. The cross is formed of raised edges with a raised X at the centre. Each arm has a central raised rib and is filled with herringbone decoration, V-shapes arranged along the central raised rib. These follow the shape of the part of the X which appears along that particular arm. The reverse of the object is undecorated. The object measures 45.9mm in length, 30.1mm in max.width, 1.5mm in thickness and weighs 11.17g. It is likely the object is an inner disc of a four-part cloth seal (Egan, 1994; no.65), the DI from DE. LONDI. NO. (as given in the Egan example). This is presumably a contracted form of the City of London motto, Domine Dirige Nos ('O Lord, direct us'). The first use of the motto of the City of London is recorded in 1633 (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/City_of_London#Arms.2C_motto_and_flag) and the style of the object suggests a similar, 17th - 18th century date. Egan suggests a similar date, from the late 1620s into the early 18th century for his series of cloth seals bearing the arms of the City of London. Special thanks are extended to Meriel Jeater, Kate Sumnall and their Museum of London colleagues for the identification of this object.

Date: 1620 - 1800

Object type: CLOTH SEAL

Last import: August 15, 2017