This finely cast copper alloy spectacle buckle was discovered by Murray on a disused golf course on Leith Hill, Surrey , land that once formed part of a stately home estate. In later years, the course was frequented by prominent figures such as former Prime Minister David Lloyd George (1916–1922) and Lord Palmerston, adding a layer of social history to this already remarkable location.
The buckle dates from the Elizabethan or early Jacobean period, around the late 1500s to early 1600s. Known as a “spectacle” buckle due to its double-loop, oval frame resembling a pair of spectacles, this style was used on belts and straps for both practical and decorative purposes. The design reflects the fashion and craftsmanship of the Tudor age, when metalwork became increasingly refined and ornamented.
Although found on ground later associated with leisure and politics, this small artefact belongs to an earlier era when the estate lands were part of rural Elizabethan Surrey. Its discovery connects centuries of history, from Tudor gentry and their household servants to the later statesmen and visitors who once walked the same slopes of Leith Hill.