Iron Age pin cast for the first time in 2,000 years

A piece of Iron Age jewellery has been recreated using clay moulds found at The Cairns excavation site this summer.

Around 60 mould fragments, dating from the first to the third centuries AD, were found on site, in an area known to have been used for fine metalworking.

Although the moulds were too fragile to use, Ben Price – a postgraduate student at the University of the Highlands and Islands Archaeology Institute – created a computer model of a mould and from it a “printed” 3d wax model of the jewellery.

This was then used to create a new clay mould and a bronze, ring-headed pin cast.

Martin Carruthers, excavation director and Masters Degree programme leader at the Archaeology Institute UHI, said, “This process gives us a unique and exciting insight into the objects that the people of The Cairns actually experienced and used over two thousand years ago.

“You can see the imperfections and the work involved and it also proves that moulds were made using an object. The process also opens up many possibilities in terms of experimental archaeology in addition to educating the public at large.”