File:Roman zoomorphic plate brooch (FindID 532947).jpg

English: An incomplete copper alloy Roman zoomorphic plate brooch in the form of a sitting hen or cockerel. It is missing the beak, tail and pin due to old breaks and shows signs of extensive post-depositional wear but is otherwise intact. The plate is pointed oval in form, conical with hollow back face and domed front face. From the pointed end of the plate projects a flat rectangular tail with folded outer edge that is perhaps incomplete due to old breaks. The opposite end is conical and forms the neck of the bird, tapering to a flattened circular head. This is decorated with circular eyes that have central pellets, and a slight crest at the top of the head, the beak now incomplete. The body of the bird/plate has the remains of symmetrical enabelled decoration comprising triangular fields on the body with traces of red enamel, surrounded at the base of the neck and around the fronts of the wings with multiple small triangular field, also containing red enamel. The wings are folded backwards and are delineated by long triangular enamelled field that taper towards the tail and contain yellow enamel. On the back face of the plate, at the tail end, is an integrally cast double pin lug with circular apertures that hold in place a separately cast axis bar, the pin now missing due to old breaks. At the opposite end of the plate is an incomplete but integrally cast catchplate of uncertain form. Interestingly, the hollow back face of the brooch is full of fired grey clay, some of which is visible through an old break on the front face of the brooch. This is probably the result of the casting process where some of the original clay mould has remained inside the brooch after casting and has simply been left rather than removed (J. Plouviez, pers. comm.). The entire brooch measures 30.74mm in length, 17.96mm in width, 26.20mm in height, and weighs 7.71g.

Similar hen or cockerel shaped zoomorphic Roman brooches are noted by Hattatt (1989: nos. 167, 620) and from Roman Colchester (Crummy, 1983: no. 75). These indicate a 2nd century AD date for the brooch.