A medieval dress fitting, dated to the 15th century, has been found in Cerne Abbas, near Dorchester, and declared a treasure. The Curator of Medieval Collections James Robinson from the British Museum described the dress fitting as lozenge-shaped, with a sphere attached to each corner and a central collet set with a pale pink stone.

He said two of the corners had been bent out of shape and the surface was decorated with roughly incised lines and the edges were serrated. Mr Johnston said that the fitting was 13mm in length and 14mm in width and was found by Alan Davis of Headswell Avenue, Bournemouth, on March 4.

He said it contained the minimum 10 per cent metal and that in view of its age it qualified as treasure and he seized it for the Crown.