Another local museum acquires Bronze Age gold

The Potteries Museum & Art Gallery in Stoke-on-Trent has secured a rare Bronze Age solid gold dress fastener. The 3,000-year-old jewel with trumpet terminals is one of only seven found in England and Wales, and it’s the first to be found in Britain in over 30 years. It is the first to be found in Staffordshire ever, and is one of the finest examples ever discovered anywhere.

The fastener consists of a solid cast bow that ends in two trumpet-shaped terminal cones. The terminals were shaped by hammering and tiny hammer marks are visible on the terminals. There are also some light scratches on the bow that are likely from wear and tear. It weighs 109 grams.

The type of fastener has been found most frequently in hoard contexts in Ireland. During the Late Bronze Age, Irish goldsmiths produced some of the finest jewelry in Europe, and these trumpet terminal fasteners are believed to be among them.

It was found by a metal detectorist near Ellastone, Staffordshire, in 2023. The museum launched an appeal to raise the £150,000 ($200,000) necessary to keep this precious artifact in the county where it was discovered, and thanks to public and private donations and grants.

Curator of local history Joe Perry said the fastener would have been worn as a visible display of wealth and status, and it was likely the person who wore it was among the highest levels of Bronze Age society.

“To find such a rare artefact in the county changes our understanding of the region during the Bronze Age,” he said.

“We are incredibly pleased that this nationally important object will remain in a publicly accessible collection following a successful fundraising campaign.”

The museum is currently closed for a major refurbishment and is scheduled to open in the spring of 2027. The dress fastener will go on permanent display when the Potteries Museum & Art Gallery reopens.

* This article was originally published here