Guides › Metalwork

Identifying vessel and cauldron fragments

Legs, rims, and patch repairs from centuries of cooking pots.

Cast bronze cooking vessels — cauldrons, skillets, posnets — were kitchen mainstays from the 13th to the 18th century, and their broken legs and rim fragments are common finds. A slightly splayed leg with a triangular section, or a rim with an everted flange and handle stub, are the classic pieces.

Sheet-metal vessels (hammered bronze or copper, often with iron handles) go back much further — Roman and even Bronze Age examples exist — and were endlessly patched: neat rectangular riveted patches on sheet fragments are themselves diagnostic of long service.

Fragments look anonymous but reward measurement: leg section and length, rim diameter estimated from the curve, metal thickness. Casting seams, sooting on the outer face, and internal tinning all tell you which side faced the fire and what the vessel did.

From the guide library inside Collectors Catalogues, a free app for cataloguing antiques and finds with honest, museum-grade records.

More on metalwork

Identifying harness and horse fittings — Pendants, mounts, and buckles.

Identifying weights — Standardised mass, marked.

Identifying keys and locks — Bit, bow, and stem.

Identifying pins and needles — Head form and point.

Identifying mounts and fittings — Rivets, solder, and back.

Identifying buckles — The commonest metal-detecting find after coins — and surprisingly datable.

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