Page 62 - John Barber's Oakham Castle and its archaeology

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(a) Complete sharply pointed left sole, with a narrow heel, slightly broken on right-hand side (Fig. 9.3). Length
9.3in, width across foot 2.7in, width across heel 1.4in.
(b) Pointed right sole (child’s). Length 6.1in, width across foot 2.1in, width across heel 1.1in.
(c) Square-ended left sole, torn on left-hand side (Fig. 9.4). Length 7.75in, width across foot 2.75in, width across
heel 1.5 in. A similar specimen was also found in an unstratified layer.
(d) Fragmentary sole, maximum length 4.7in, maximum width 3.25in, thickness 0.4in. This interesting fragment is
composed of at least six pieces, which are held together by leather studs (Fig. 9.5). Apparently waste
fragments were saved to thicken the sole in this way.
(e) Right rear upper of a boot (Fig. 9.6). At the top is a punched decoration arranged in three rows; firstly, the edge
is indented, below this is an irregular row of small star-shaped incisions, while at the bottom is a row of larger
trefoil-shaped holes. This specimen has been drawn from the inside to show the diagonal line of stitching
where a heel stiffener was attached.

More leather fragments came from a layer of midden material at 8ft, just below a layer which yielded a number of
tyg fragments. Aside from a large number of scraps, these consisted only of soles, of which two are illustrated (Figs.
9.7 and 9.8). Both are wide-toed and well smoothed on the inside. The final piece of note is a large front upper
brought up by the grab from about 12ft, a medieval level (Fig. 9.9). It has a pointed toe, and is badly torn on the right
side. The leather is thick and supple. This specimen has six buckle holes between 1.5in and 2in from the inner edge.
The main point of interest, however, lies in the method of fastening, which was by means of a simple strap and metal
buckle. The latter is held in place by a strip of leather, the ends of which are threaded through each other on the
underside of the specimen. Continual use of the strap has creased the centre of the leather.

METAL OBJECTS

A few objects were found at about 13ft in the moat, the most important being:
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Fig. 10.1: Knife, surviving portion 7in long, stamped ‘W’ (?).
Fig. 10.2: Knife, surviving portion 5in long, stamped ‘L’ (?). The concave end suggests that this is a currier’s
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knife, used for working leather after tanning.
Knife (not illustrated), surviving portion 3½in
long (blade ¾in).

A small fragment of iron was found attached to a
sherd, from (2c) of the rampart.

THE CLAY PIPES

by A H Oswald MA, FSA, FMA

As can be seen from the table below, the pipes all
came from the top layers of the rampart, or were
found unstratified in 1953. The majority of them
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conformed to the well-known types, and few
required detailed comment. As a whole, the pipes
show mainly London and East Anglian influence,
with probably only three ascribable to Bristol, and
perhaps one to Broseley or the Potteries area.
S
Fig. 10.3: Type 4a. Marked ‘ B C ’ on base,
single-stroke roulette on rim. Duplicates:
British Museum, and from Bankside,
London (Guildhall Museum).
Fig. 10.4: Same type. Marked ‘BC’ on its base,
different dye, but similar roulette.
Duplicates: Bankside, and Belfast. Similar
marks at Guildhall Museum, and Hughes
Collection, British Museum. Probably a
London maker (not known).
Fig. 10.5: Same type, also marked ‘BC’, but
different dye, and wedge-shaped roulette.
Fig. 10.6: Type 4d. Similar Nottingham. Similar
embossed tree, Derby and Hanley. Identical,
Leicester.

Fig. 10. Metal Objects, Clay Pipes,
Stone, Flint, and Bone Objects.

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