Record

Mirror handle of cetacean bone

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From Bac Mhic Connain, North Uist, Outer Hebrides

Postcard of Mirror handle of cetacean bone.
000-100-038-780-C
© National Museums Scotland

Mirror handle of cetacean bone

This mirror handle was found at Bac Mhic Connain on North Uist in the Outer Hebrides. It is similar to examples known elsewhere in bronze, and was used with a bronze mirror. The handle dates from sometime between 0 and 200 AD.

The handle was made from cetacean bone, bone from a sea mammal such as a whale or a dolphin. The bone has been finely carved. The bar at the top is slotted lengthwise, presumably for attaching to the mirror plate by wire or gut.

Bone from whales or dolphins was widely used at settlements in the Northern and Western Isles of Scotland, utilized for objects which are made in other materials elsewhere. It is very strong and resilient.


Record details

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Online ID: 000-100-038-780-C
Image Rights Holder: National Museums Scotland
Project: 0098: National Museums Scotland
Project description | View all records in project
Ref: National Museums Scotland  X.GNB 61
Date: Between 0 and 200 AD
Material: Bone, cetacean
Dimensions: 3.09" L
What: Mirror handle
Subject:
Who: Beveridge Collection
Where: Scotland, Inverness-shire, North Uist, Vallay, Bac Mhic Connain
Event:
Description: Mirror handle of cetacean bone, a copy of a Lochlee bronze handle, from Bac Mhic Connain, North Uist
References:
  • HallĂ©n, Ywonne. The use of bone and antler at Foshigarry and Bac Mhic Connain, two Iron Age sites on North Uist, Western Isles. Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, 124 (1994), pp 189-231, esp. pp 198, 224-5. 
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