(ORDO NEWS) — In France, archaeologists first spoke about a unique find made back in 2020 during excavations at the historic royal castle of Villers-Cotret. They found a 15th-century seal decorated with the image of St. George the Victorious.
A brief report on the discovery is published on the website of the National Institute for Preventive Archaeological Research (Inrap). It was made during the surveys that preceded the reconstruction of the royal castle.
This residence was built in 1528 by King Francis I. It went down in history as the place where in August 1539 the famous decree of Villers-Kotret was signed – the so-called ordodance, according to which French replaced Latin in all official acts of administration and justice.
The seal matrix was found in the north wing of the house in the so-called coal pocket near the ancient fireplace, where the owner may have lost it. This bronze thing is interesting in that it is equipped with a ring for hanging. That is, it could be worn on a chain, ribbon, braided cord or leather strap.
The seal does not have the correct round shape. Its width is 22 mm, height – 17 mm and thickness – five millimeters. In the center of the matrix is a horseman, in which the experts identified St. George the Victorious. The plot is recognizable: a horseman with a spear in his hand hangs over a defeated dragon.
The image of the saint is surrounded by an inscription of Gothic letters, literally it looks like this: “IP PRI/EUR/DEVILLERS/LESM/OINE”.
It is noteworthy that experts dated the seal to the 15th century according to the type of horseman’s armor. In particular, George the Victorious is depicted in a closed knight’s helmet. Scientists report that they could not find information about such seals in any archive.
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