Post-medieval silver thimble with heart-shaped cartouche and bird motifs
Record status
Individual type · partial
Period
1650-1750 A.D.
This post-medieval silver thimble dates from 1650 to 1750 A.D. and measures 16 mm in height with a total weight of 3.14 grams. The body of the thimble is constructed with a dimpled surface, featuring annulets decorating both the sides and the top dome.
The central design element on the exterior is an empty heart-shaped cartouche flanked by two supporters depicted as birds regardant. Positioned directly above the heart-shaped cartouche are the maker's initials, 'MC'. The interior of the thimble, located immediately above the base rim, contains two very indistinct stamps, with the lower mark potentially representing a lion. The item was discovered in North Walsham, Norfolk, UK, in 2011 and has undergone authentication and reporting through the Portable Antiquities Scheme.
It serves as a representative example of decorative metalwork for personal sewing implements from the seventeenth to eighteenth centuries.
Evidence at a glance
- Linked sources
- 1
- Photograph views
- 1
- Catalogue references
- 0
Counts describe this entry’s documentation, not authenticity, rarity or completeness. Photographs may show one specimen; check each caption and licence.
Physical characteristics
- Height
- 16 mm (5/8 in.)
- Weight
- 3.14 grams
- Material
- silver
Technical characteristics
- Stamps
- two indistinct marks on interior, one potentially a lion
Design
- Surface
- annulets on sides and top
- Inscriptions
- MC
- Ornamentation
- heart-shaped cartouche flanked by birds regardant
Identification
- Source note
- Described from a single auction-house listing published on Invaluable (reproduced with Invaluable's permission). Details apply to that one example; other examples of the type may differ, and the listing is supplementary evidence, not authentication.
- Maker named in listing
- MC
Catalogue references
No catalogue numbers recorded. Numbers are only published once transcribed from a verified edition of a standard catalogue — they are never inferred.