Brooches by period: Roman fibulae to medieval ring brooches
Mackreth's Roman families, Saxon disc and bow brooches, medieval ring and annular types. The brooch in detail across two thousand years.
Brooches are the most common Roman artefact found by UK detectorists, and they continue uninterrupted through the Saxon and medieval periods. The form changes recognisably era by era, and a half-decent typology will narrow a brooch find to a 50-year window from form alone. Here’s the framework: Mackreth’s Roman families, the Saxon disc and bow brooches, and the medieval annular and ring-brooch typology.
Roman brooches — Mackreth’s nine families
Donald Mackreth’s 2011 reference Brooches in Late Iron Age and Roman Britain organises Romano-British brooches into nine families, each subdivided into types. PAS uses these family names directly in classification fields.
| Family | Date range | Diagnostic |
|---|---|---|
| Late La Tène | c.150 BC – AD 50 | Iron Age survivors; one-piece construction; sometimes called Nauheim derivatives |
| Colchester | AD 25–60 | One-piece, distinct spring case with hook; conquest-period |
| Colchester Derivative | AD 40–150 | Two-piece, separate spring + hook; varied bows; Hod Hill / Polden Hill / Dolphin sub-types |
| Headstud | AD 75–175 | Round knop on top of bow; often with chain loop |
| Trumpet | AD 75–175 | Flaring trumpet head with knop; classic Romano-British |
| Continental Imports | AD 50–250 | Aucissa, Bagendon, others — non-British style |
| Plate | AD 100–250 | Flat round / lozenge / zoomorphic plate, often enamelled |
| Knee | AD 150–300 | Bent knee-shaped bow; sometimes called Military |
| Crossbow | AD 250–400 | Late Roman; T-shape with knobs; military / administrative; gold or silver examples high-status |
| Penannular | Iron Age – early medieval | Open ring with rotating pin; continues into Saxon period |
The Trumpet brooch — a Romano-British signature
Trumpet brooches are one of the most distinctive Roman-British types — the head flares out trumpet-style, often with a central knop where the trumpet meets the bow. They’re particularly common in northern Britain (Hadrian’s Wall region) and reflect a regional craft tradition that didn’t exist on the Continent.
The Crossbow brooch — late Roman official
Crossbow brooches (3rd–4th c.) were worn as a mark of military or administrative status. Gold and silver examples were senior official insignia; copper-alloy versions were issued more widely. The T-shaped frame with prominent terminal knobs is unmistakable.
Anglo-Saxon brooches (5th–11th c.)
Migration-period (5th–mid 6th c.)
The earliest Anglo-Saxon brooches are continental imports and early Germanic types arriving with the migration. Principal categories:
- Button brooches: small disc brooches with a human-face mask in the centre. 5th c.
- Cruciform brooches: long brooches with cross-shaped head, equal-armed cross silhouette. 5th–6th c. female burial type.
- Saucer brooches: round bowl-shape, decorated on the convex face. 5th–6th c.
- Square-headed brooches: rectangular head plate, long bow, often Style I or Style II animal ornament. 6th–early 7th c. high-status.
Middle Saxon (7th–9th c.)
Middle Saxon brooch styles include:
- Disc brooches: round, often gilded, with interlocking cross or animal motifs.
- Composite disc brooches: high-status, multi-layer gilded silver / gold with garnet inlays. The Sutton Hoo style.
- Annular brooches: open-ring brooches with rotating pin.
Late Saxon (9th–11th c.)
Late Saxon brooches include the disc brooch in Trewhiddle style (interlocking animals, chip-carved), the Borre-style brooches showing Scandinavian influence, and the penannular brooch continuing from earlier periods.
Medieval brooches (1100–1500)
Medieval brooches are dominated by two forms: the ring brooch (an open or closed ring with pin) and the annular brooch (the same principle in a more decorative form). Both function in the same way — the pin pierces the fabric, then the ring is rotated to catch the pin against the fabric edge.
Ring brooches
- Simple ring: undecorated copper-alloy or silver ring with hinged pin. Common 12th–15th c.
- Inscribed ring: legend around the front of the ring — often Latin religious or amatory phrases like
AVE MARIA,AMOR VINCIT OMNIA,IHS NAZARENVS. 13th–14th c. - Heart-shape: stylised heart-shaped ring. 14th–15th c. amatory / sentimental.
- Stone-set: ring with cabochon stones or glass inserts. High-status.
Disc brooches and badges
Pilgrim badges (cast lead-alloy disc or shaped brooches commemorating pilgrimage destinations — Canterbury for Becket, Walsingham for the Virgin) are common late-medieval finds. They function as both brooch and devotional token.
Post-medieval and modern
Post-medieval brooches are dominated by formal jewellery rather than functional dress fasteners (which were taken over by hook-and-eye and button systems). 17th-c. mourning brooches, 18th-c. paste-set brooches, and Victorian sentimental brooches (often with hair compartments) make up the category. They’re less common as detector finds than medieval brooches, partly because they were seldom lost in fields and partly because they were often recycled into newer jewellery.
Procedural identification
- Identify the form: bow-and-pin (Roman / Saxon bow brooches); plate (Roman plate, Saxon button / saucer / disc); ring (medieval); penannular (Iron Age through Saxon).
- For bow brooches: examine head and terminal for type-defining features — trumpet, headstud, crossbow, cruciform, square-headed.
- For plate brooches: identify shape (disc, lozenge, zoomorphic) and decoration (enamel cells, Style I/II animal ornament, Trewhiddle interlace).
- For ring / annular brooches: read any legend; note stone settings; identify decoration style.
- Match to typology: Mackreth for Roman; PAS datasheets for Saxon; Egan and Pritchard for medieval.
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