A pair of oak doors, four wrought iron crescent hinges with strapwork, made in Gannat, 13th century

A pair of large oak doors with iron hinge straps. The straps, which have been scored with a chisel, terminate in scrolls with angular folliage and are accompanied by a horse-shoe shaped strap in each corner.

From the Fitzhenry Collection.

Historical significance: The history of iron work has been obscured by the corrosive effects of rust, which particularly affects ironwork in contact with the weather. Many of the examples which survive are badly decayed. The hinge-work on the present doors therefore represent a remarkable survival.

One of the commonest medieval uses of ironwork was for the protection of wooden doors and chests. Both of these object types required strengthening for durability and security, and so elaborate hinges were designed to cover much of the surface and act as both a hinge and a guard. Hinge scrollwork could be extremely elaborate, and was often stamped with dies or chiseled for further embelishment.

Towards the end of the twelfth century a new style of ironwork emerged in parts of the Auvergne in France, characterised by the repetition of the Greek honeysuckle or palmette and a tendency to geometric arrangement. The present doors provide a good example of this type however the scoring of the ironwork with a chisel is more common in earlier work.

One of the commonest medieval uses of ironwork was for the protection of wooden doors, such as these, and chests. Both of these object types required strengthening for durability and security, and so elaborate hinges were designed to cover much of the surface and act as both a hinge and a guard. Hinge scrollwork could be extremely elaborate, and was often stamped with dies or chiseled for further embelishment. Iron was expensive in the Middle Ages, and these substantial doors are likely to have come from an important building. The hinge-work on the present doors represent a remarkable survival.

M.396-1924