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This ornate artefact is known as the Mold Cape. Thought to date to c.1900 1600 BC, it is one of the finest examples of prehistoric sheet gold-working yet found in Britain, crafted from a single ingot, which was shaped and decorated with ribs and bosses possibly representing strings of beads among folds of cloth.
The Cape was discovered in a burial mound, together with a number of amber beads, on 11 October 1833 by workmen quarrying for stone in Mold, Flintshire, Wales. Found broken and crushed, it was initially interpreted as belonging to a high-ranking man, but conservation and reconstruction efforts since then have revealed the Cape’s diminutive size, and it seems more likely that it was made to fit a petite woman or a young teenager. When placed over the shoulders it would have restricted the movement of its wearer’s arms, but small holes on the upper and lower edges of the metal suggest that it might have once had a lining, possibly of leather, to make it more comfortable.
It was acquired by the British Museum in 1836, where it has been on display ever since, but the Cape is currently on loan in Treasure: History Unearthed, a new exhibition running at the Museum of Liverpool until 29 March 2026. For more information, see http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/whatson/museum-of-liverpool/exhibition/treasure-history-unearthed, and watch out for a more detailed exploration of the exhibition’s themes in next month’s CA.
Text: Kathryn Krakowka / Image: Pete Carr
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