Technical Observations: The patina on the mirror side is predominantly light green and tan with some darker greenish black near one edge. On the reverse, the patina is also a mottled light green with some brown areas where the exposed metal has oxidized. The dendritic structure that is characteristic of cast metal is very visible in those sections. There are also brown burial deposits. A damaged area at the center of the turned lines on the interior shows the remains of lead solder, which is evidence of an attachment.
This element is unconnected to the smaller mirror components of 1895.241.A, 1895.241.B, 1895.241.C, 1895.241.D, and 1895.241.G. It was cast by the lost-wax process, and the decorative bands were refinished in the metal. Chisel marks going in a variety of directions are visible within the central diameter (2.0 cm) of the reverse side, as if to remove excess material. There is a relatively thin layer of corrosion. Most of the pieces assembled under 1895.241 have at least a few small crystalline black growths of copper sulfide that result from their post-excavation storage conditions.
Carol Snow and Francesca G. Bewer (submitted 2002, updated 2012)
