Unique detector find of a female medieval seal

A silver seal from the late 13th century was found in the spring of 2019 using a metal detector on the grounds of a local trade school. Thanks to the quality of the material, it is in near-original, excellent condition. Medieval seals bearing a woman's name are among the very rare finds, especially for a family of such status.

The seal of a woman from a prominent noble family was found in the area of Hambleden in Buckinghamshire. It is oval in shape, 3.3cm long, with slightly pointed ends. Around the edges of the front of the die is the inscription: 'SIGILLUM.MAR.GERIE.PEVREL', meaning 'Seal of Margery Pevel'. In the centre is a bundle of grain with scrolls and flowers at the sides and top. The reverse side has a massive eyelet.

Seals are not that uncommon finds, but silver ones are found much less often. If they are with specific names, they are already much rarer. And those seals that bear a female name are very rare, they can literally be counted on the fingers of one hand: "A seal in silver with an identifiable individual and context of loss is a very unusual event," said Ms Byard, an expert at Oxford Archaeology South. "It conjures up romantic notions of how the seal was lost - was she just riding or walking? It would have been quite an expensive item, so how would she have reacted to the loss?"

The current Henley Business School is situated on what was originally the medieval site of Yewden Manor, which the Peverel family owned from 1248 to the mid-14th century. So to find a silver medieval seal bearing the female name of a prominent noble family on its former estate is very interesting indeed. That is also why the coroner declared it a treasure at a recent inquest; moreover, it meets the two main criteria of the 1996 Treasure Act: it is made entirely of precious metal (silver) and is more than 300 years old.

Margerie Peverel, as the possible owner of the seal, could have had two: One is Margaret of Cornwall, wife of James Peverel and mother of Sir Hugh Peverel IV, who died in 1349. The other is her granddaughter Margaret, daughter of Hugh, who was born in 1321. Both lived at Yewden Manor. At that time the spelling of the name was not fixed, so the surname Pevrel could also have been spelled Peverel or Peverell, and Margaret's name could have been spelled Margerie. Miss Byard believes the owner was more likely a younger woman.

Now that the seal has been declared a treasure, its fair market value will be assessed. Eventually, it will be offered to area museums for purchase for their collections.

Roman Nemec

Sources: bbc.com, thehistoryblog.com, discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk