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UNIDENTIFIED OBJECT
Unique ID: MAS-D100233
Object type certainty: Certain
Workflow
status: Published 
This find appears to be some form of decorative finial manufactured from a non-ferrous metal, possibly a copper alloy. It measures approximately 356 mm in length, 102 mm in width at the base and 127 mm in width at the widest point just below the top of the object. The base appears to be damaged, though clearly separates into three possible legs or feet. Approximately 76 mm from the base it seems to narrow slightly, possibly due to bearing a ring decoration, though this is difficult to ascertain due to the level of encrustation on the object. The shaft of the item extends for a further c. 76 mm before expanding to a Doric column style embellishment of three gradually expanding rings, the uppermost having rounded edges. Above this is an elaborate styled decoration with six radially arranges loops, coming to a point in the centre.
The intended use of the object is not evident from the available information and it is not clear whether this was cargo or part of a vessels fittings. Suggested uses include a fire dog or part of a fireplace, decorative finial of some description. In terms of date the style appears to be 19th century or later and, given that it comes from a wreck dating to 1878 this seems most likely.
Notes:
This item was recovered from the wreck of SS Pomerania, a German ocean liner steamer built in 1873 by J. Caird & Co., in Greenock. This vessel was one of many owned by the Hamburg Amerikanische Packetfahrt Actien Gesellschaft (HAPAG); a transatlantic shipping enterprise established in Hamburg in 1847 that transported hundreds of thousands of emigrants from Germany, Scandinavia, and eastern Europe to the United States, Canada, Latin America, and other destinations around the world. The ship sank in 1878, 5 miles SE of Folkestone whilst carrying 109 passengers and 111 crew en route from New York to Cherbourg and Hamburg, last from Plymouth, following a collision with Welsh barque Moel Eilian and resulting in the loss of 55 lives.
NRHE and Kent HER reference numbers cited in this record refer to the wreck of SS Pomerania.
Class: Metal work
Wreck details
Droit number: 304/18
Chronology
Broad period: NINETEENTH CENTURY
Period from: NINETEENTH CENTURY
Period to: NINETEENTH CENTURY
Date to: Exactly AD 1878
Dimensions and weight
Quantity: 1
Length: 355 mm
Width: 127 mm
Discovery dates
Date(s) of discovery: Wednesday 26th September 2018
Personal details
Found by: This information is restricted for your login.
Recorded by: P T
Other reference numbers
NRHE monument number: 883110
Other reference: Kent HER Number: TR 33 SW 26
Droit ID: 304/18
Materials and construction
Spatial coordinates
4 Figure: TR3232
Four figure Latitude: 51.04048916
Four figure longitude: 1.30806705
1:25K map: TR3232
1:10K map: TR33SW
Display four figure position on What3Words
Unmasked grid reference accurate to a 1 metre square.
References cited
No references cited so far.
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