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Roman odd mount (or matrix)

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Renate H:
How Roman these mounts are, others can answer better than I can. They have the pelta-like shape element in common with the piece in your initial message. The pelta of the two mounts has probably a function, the other one hasn't. The shape is so simple that it is not suitable for assigning it to a culture. The winged animals are much more significant in my opinion.

SC:
These two mounts are Roman, they have exact parallels from archaeological finds in various parts of the Empire.  The small loops, which only appear on a small number of items sharing the same design are believed to be suspension loops for light objects.   

The first item does appear to have animals promotes on top, though these are not unknown among Roman items - especially several types of 4th-5th century buckles.  They are of course used by other cultures too.  But the rest of the item looks a lot like Roman belt decorations of the 2nd century AD, similar to but not exactly like the Kloster-Neuburg type.

As for use.  Actual punches for leather or metal tend to be smaller as they need to be used with a hammer as a punch or die.  This item has a flat irregular back that would make it hard to used to emboss leather or metal but easy to press into clay to make a mould.  It could also just be a test product from one side of a mould.

SC

Virgil H:
Maybe I am missing something, but what do the original photos have to do with either of the other two posts with images? I see virtually no resemblances with designs or even the object itself. I realize this has nothing to do with actually identifying it, but I always try to learn about what I cannot see. To my untrained eye, this looks more decorative (as in maybe celtic knot design or something) versus animals or anything realistic.

Thanks,
Virgil

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