File:Dragonesque Romano-British brooch (FindID 64481).jpg

English: An impressive example of a complete Romano-British Dragonesque brooch. This brooch is a reversed ‘S’ shape in plan and is 51mm long, 22.02mm wide and weighs 14.78g. The underlying, abstract, Iron Age design is that of two cornucopias, joined ‘mouth to mouth’ at the centre. However, where the ‘mouths’ of the cornucopia would have butted, the ‘S’ shape has been expanded to allow for extensive enamelling. The centre of the enamelled design is a rectangular panel within which are three lozenge shapes placed end to end, in what is considered to be a ‘provincial Roman style’. Yellow enamel can be seen within two of the lozenges, but no enamel can be discerned in the rest of the rectangle. To either side of the rectangular panel is a further panel, that is based on the ‘swash ‘N’ pattern of earlier examples. Within these panels are a ‘wave’ or ‘curl’ of blue enamel, which survives almost intact. Surrounding the waves in these panels are traces of red enamel.

To either end of the brooch is an openwork zoomorphic ‘head’ with a curly snout that is brought around and joins back onto the head near to the ‘eye’. This gives it a carynx trumpet design instead of separate ears. The decorative ‘eye’ consists of a ring and dot, with the dot being enamelled blue. The head is also joined back to the body with its ‘chin on chest’. The copper alloy pin survives intact, and is curled over one ‘neck’ of the brooch, prevented from slipping off by one of the ‘heads’, not unlike the form of Penannular brooches.

The British Museum comments that, though a direct parallel is unavailable, the reverse ‘S’ design is rare, but not unknown. Given the considerable variation in Dragonesque brooches, it should also not be considered an unknown type. The British Museum considers this artefact to probably be a Brigantian brooch from Yorkshire and date it to the 2-4th centuries. For information on other types of Dragonesque brooch, see Hattatt,1982, Ancient and Romano-British Brooches, page 152.