Wool weight, probably from the 16th century, sold for £5100 at John Taylors’ auction.
The 5½in (14cm) long, 7lb bronze weight bore an armorial shield, which was somewhat battered but appeared to resemble the Royal Coat of Arms before the Union of the Crowns, a raised ‘h’, crowned marks and EL VII A, all of which may repay further research.
“I’ve seen the occasional wool weight offered in Lincolnshire before, but they were Georgian ones selling at around £500,” said auctioneer James Laverack.
With no precedents found for this weight from a couple of centuries earlier, Laverack gave it a tempting £400-600 estimate (much to the vendor’s delight) in the May 22 sale, where it sold to a private bidder at £5100.
