Kurzvorträge Block 3 - Mittelalter

I have brought the object with me in the classic transport box, at least male numismatist of the shirt-breast-bag can see. But I also have a few, probably you can see it on the photo, also in the PowerPoint presentation, much better. Yes, who was Foucault? This question was asked by my predecessor, Dr. Peter Ilich, in office already in 2010. He also did not have an answer to this, when he presented this mysterious piece of find here from Erwitte Bad Westernkotten in the Soest district. And I don't have an answer to it today either, but it has reappeared again, such a piece, a coin-like jewellery object of the 11th, 12th century, and surprisingly on almost exactly the same find area as in 2009. The discoverer is the licensed probe diver Jürgen Niederschlag from Atten-Dorn. The find is a few years old, but it was only processed here last year. And because of its importance, it was also declared a treasure shelf find. Incidentally, it is the third of its kind. Another piece was already discovered in 2006 during excavations in Paderborn, Badelhorner Feld. And if you compare the front pages, all three pieces are stamp-like in each other. Then there was a relative in 2000, a slightly larger specimen, a Blomberg Echenbruch in the Lippe district. It can be seen that there is a breast image to the left, surrounded by a coat, the head is diademized, the hand holds an eagle scepter in front of the head, the inscription reads Focco me, the M from me is missing, Fezit, Focco me Fezit, Focco made me. The smaller pieces have a slightly changed image, but also a breast image to the left, which is also supposed to be diademized. There is a ring over the left shoulder, which is supposed to close a stylized fiber as a coat. And the inscription is shortened to the essential, namely Focco. Obviously, the smaller pieces are simplified, in image and inscription, followers of the larger piece. Yes, it is one-sided, by embossing, not by casting, made round metal plates in coin size and coin thickness. The material is copper, with apparently a higher proportion of zinc or tin. The piece from Blomberg-Echenbruch, the larger one, was formerly gold-plated. The other smaller ones are not, but they have two soldering marks on the back. And these are exactly opposite each other. And if you align the front side of the embossing correctly, they are also horizontal. This coin-like jewelry object was further processed into a fiber, in which needle and needle rest were soldered. Yes, the find site in Erwitte, Bad Western-Kotten is characterized numismatically by several coins from the 11th and 12th centuries. And also by a third coin fiber on this area, which is designed in a very different way. And other finds can also be calculated through the High Middle Ages, so that at least one has a hint for the dating of the new find. Yes, with Focco, the manufacturer, i.e. the stamp cutter or art craftsman, who produced the piece. Peter Illich discusses a production in Paderborn, in the vicinity of the coin city, where they could have been offered for sale. But so far, the new find has not yet provided an answer to this question of who Focco was. Only other finds can help further. And that's why I ask, dear probe walkers, more of it. Yes, working with probe walkers is part of everyday business in the outside world. As I said before, you will see the precious ones that we have all collected. I was shocked for a moment and thought, oh man, the topic is missing. But it is also the case that several times the unspectacular finds are the most interesting. That's how it was with this piece. The probe walkers in the outskirts are committed to delivering their finds regularly. The transport takes place in any containers that the modern packaging industry has to offer. So you open shoe boxes, yoghurt cups, or, I don't know, transport boxes that have been left over by migratory birds, immediately a find falls into your eye that you know and can address. Like, for example, the edge bar that was presented by Ingo Pfeffer today. Other finds, however, require more research. So it was also with this piece, which was found by Sven Feldhoff in Neukirchen and was handed over last year at the outside. At first you couldn't say much, except that it was probably a bronze trailer with strong corrosion marks. An interpretation could not be made. Added with a few tips from the outside and the literature research, this trailer became appealing. If you look at the outer shape of the trailer, it becomes obvious that it has strong similarities to a find from Warendorffelsen. In Warendorff, it came to an area excavation. In contrast to the piece from Neukirchen, the belt distributor in breakthrough technology was borrowed from a post pit. Kai Bulka presented this piece years ago. He noticed that the piece shows strong analogies to finds, which represent filigree target discs. These date back to the 11th and 12th centuries. The piece from Warendorffelsen and Neukirchen are much more massive than these target discs from the 11th and 12th centuries. If you look at the piece, it becomes noticeable that it looks very similar. The upper piece comes from Warendorffelsen and the lower one from Neukirchen. In the middle, there is a lion, which is directed to the left and looks forward. It has two plastic elevations, which can be called human heads of fear. Visual representations also show the dating in this time. Now we are lucky that the old find was found in a post pit with additional finds. We have ceramics from Pafra Tamacha and we also have ball pots with clear inlay. These also speak for the dating in the 11th and 12th centuries. Whether the piece is a cast-like piece and was made in the same workshop, or whether these pieces from Warendorffelsen and Neukirchen should imitate the target discs of the 11th and 12th centuries in a plump way, cannot be answered at the moment and remains up to future research.