Padlock and key
Record status
Individual type · partial
Period
c.1530
This object is a wrought iron padlock accompanied by a replacement key, produced by an unknown maker. The padlock was crafted in France around 1530, though it was initially believed to be of Flemish origin. The accompanying key is an early 18th-century replacement.
The padlock features a square iron backplate adorned with eight decorative quatrefoil studs placed along its perimeter. A projecting lock box is mounted onto this plate and embellished with applied, pierced tracery openwork surrounding the keyhole. The curved hasp forming the lock loop is partly grooved along its length. The early 18th-century wrought iron key features a kidney-shaped bow, a straight stem, and a notched bit.
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.
Historical context
The padlock was originally thought to be Flemish before being identified as French work dating to circa 1530. Its accompanying key was made separately as an early 18th-century replacement.
Physical characteristics
- Material
- Wrought iron, pierced
Technical characteristics
- Inscriptions
- Date: Text: Research required; Latest: Research required; Earliest: Research required; Note: Research required; Type: Research required; Medium: Research required; Method: Research required; Script: Research required; Content: Research required; Language: Research required; Position: Research required; Inscriber: Name: Id: Research required; Text: Research required; Association: Id: Research required; Text: Research required; Description: Research required; Translation: Research required; Interpretation: Research required; Transliteration: Research required
- Maker recorded
- Unknown
- Place recorded
- France
Identification
- Source note
- Transcribed from the Victoria and Albert Museum collection record for this single object; how far it represents a wider collectible type has not been independently verified.
- Museum object name
- Padlock and key
- Museum object number
- M.128-1927
Catalogue references
No catalogue numbers recorded. Numbers are only published once transcribed from a verified edition of a standard catalogue — they are never inferred.