Mystery Artefact

[BAJR]

Damn... I know this one..
Give me a moment...

[Jack]

Is a ceramic object? Is it symmetrical on the other side? Does it look handmade? Where is it from, what kind of context?

[Dinosaur]

If its lead/cu alloy (I think lead, actually), from memory they turn up regularly (ok, every few years) in RB contexts but no one knows what they are - and am b***ered if I can immediately lay my hands on a ref for a published one, saw one last week in something but can't remember where :face-crying:

[Dinosaur]

Googling 'Roman' and 'polyhedral' is an education........

[pdurdin]

http://www.georgehart.com/virtual-polyhe...hedra.html has some similar-ish items.

And google images search for "Roman dodocahedra" shows lots.

And...lots of guesses here: http://bestuff.com/stuff/a-roman-dodecahedron

And a site all about them: http://www.romandodecahedron.com/

[BAJR]

I have recognised this from an industrial process... It is used to introduce ignitian into a kiln... um... damn.... I do remember something about this... and it has rags put into it... Curses... I will keep searching!

[Dinosaur]

http://www.georgehart.com/virtual-polyhe...hedra.html has some similar-ish items.

And google images search for "Roman dodocahedra" shows lots.

And...lots of guesses here: http://bestuff.com/stuff/a-roman-dodecahedron

And a site all about them: http://www.romandodecahedron.com/

Wow! Proves I wasn't mad. Love the 'astronomical' one with diagrams :face-approve:

And the shiny one with knobs on :face-approve::face-approve:

[pdurdin]

If BAJR is right about the kiln ignitian thing then maybe they're not the same sort of thing though...not sure I'd want to stick these elaborate and possibly decorated and expensive items into a kiln! The image posted here is a little less high-class though...

[Dinosaur]

If the astronomy guy is right, to function it just needs to be roughly the right shape with holes in, and the rest of the year you could use it as a loom weight of something? And a simple lead one would be relatively simple and cheap to make at home? - actually do we know yet what the one in the pic is actually made of?

[Callsign]

It's ceramic, symmetrical roughly, crudely made with a little decoration of lines. The top hole (as seen in the top of the object in the picture) is larger than the rest, suggesting something went inside.

It's not really heavy enough to be a loom weight