Carved with soft facial features and carefully executed cosmetic lines around the eye, earring, and carefully detailed duplex wig with gently wavy curls; likely from the Ramesside Period; mounted on a custom-made stand.

Modelled in the round with a muscular nude body, his club resting on his shoulder and the hair dressed in rows of tight, close-set curls underneath the Nemean lionskin hood with cloak billowing over his left arm, the paws tied across his chest; mounted on a custom-made display stand.

Carved head of a prepubescent worshipper of Isis, with soft facial features, long nose, small downturned mouth, heavy-lidded eyes, the whole giving the face a sombre or mournful appearance; the hair textured to indicate a short cut and combed forward across the scalp, sidelock above the right ear; mounted on a 16th century carved breccia upper body with leather cuirass and pteruges to right shoulder, cloak draped across the shoulders and fastened at the clavicle on the right side with a disc-brooch; socle base; some restoration.

Modelled in the round and originally part of a monumental statue, the naturalistic right foot encased in a trochades leather sandal with median reversed tongue secured with side straps and thick looped laces; the thick platform sole slightly curved, toes and nails well defined; mounted on a substantial custom-made display stand.

Modelled in the half-round, nude with eyelids half-closed in sleep; a drapery partly covering the head and wrapping around the lower body under the hips; the hairstyle similar to those of the Antonine Dynasty, the peaceful face supported by the hands and the ear pierced to accept an earring; iron reinforcing rod to the feet and the right arm's armilla a later replacement; upper head restored in Parian marble.

An imposing panel divided to four sections by a central cross on a stepped pedestal, the lower and upper arm with branch-like extensions; the upper quadrants with a circlet surrounding a palm tree-shaped motif; each lower quadrant with a bird in profile facing back; mounted on a custom-made display stand.

Carved skull on a short neck with musculature and blood vessels; mandible in place with some teeth in sockets, wisps of hair adhering to the dome of the skull; one zygomatic bone partly absent; square-section socle base.

Carved in the half-round head of a Bodhisattva (probably Maitreya) with fine detailing to the arched brow, aquiline nose, neat moustache and full lips; the eyes heavily lidded, urna to the forehead, long open lobes to the ears; the hair in multi-stranded curling locks gathered into an ushnisha with brow-band below; heavily cleaned, conserved, and mounted on a custom-made stand; supplied with original old wooden base with collector's label: 'Head of Bodhisattva / Fine grain schist / Gandhara, Northwest Pakistan / 4th century'.

Spherical in profile with very broad vertical socket, lattice-pattern to the sidewall forming low studs. 262 grams, 50 mm



Private collection, Arundel, West Sussex, UK, 1975-late 1990s.

Each with a sturdy square-section tang, broad barbed head with midrib. 92 grams total, 15 cm each



Ex London, UK, collection, 1990s.

Two of these arrowheads seem to belong to the type V, subcategory type C, according to the classification of Khorasani and Negahban. In the four categories of triangular bronze arrowheads from Luristan, Marlik and Northern Iran individuated by Negahban, subtypes C and D of type V are larger arrow or javelin heads, C with barbed shoulders.

With a narrow pointed blade and wide raised flange down centre, straight sides, well marked shoulders with narrow tang, one hole for rivet. 128 grams total, 17.6 cm high including stand



From the possessions of a member of a German princely family, gathered in the late 19th century, until the 1930s. with Auction House CUSP, Vienna, Auction Antique Art from Asia and from the Eastern Mediterranean, 16 June 2012, lot 75 [Part].

The type was technically more advanced than previous types of blades in the Near East, owing to the shape of the weapon, with its slightly convex sides widening out near the point, which combined the advantages of the leaf-shaped and straight-sided forms.

With a narrow curving blade and a tongue-shaped socket. 420 grams, 11.2 cm



Ex Californian collection, USA, 1980s.

Including triangular-section with long tang, barbed, elongated lanceolate with mid-rib and other types. 485 grams total, 12-17.5 cm



Ex London, UK, collection, 1990s.

These arrowheads seem to belong to the type V, subcategory types A and C according to the classification of Khorasani and Negahban. In the four categories of triangular bronze arrowheads from Luristan, Marlik and Northern Iran individuated by Negahban, subtypes A and C of type V are larger arrow heads with barbed shoulders and triangular heads. The type was widely used in Elam between 13th and 10th century B.C.

Piriform body decorated with concentric circles inside a pointed star pattern, with domed filler-hole, intended to be filled with explosive liquid and wick, used as a hand grenade. 610 grams, 11.5 cm



Acquired 1980-2015. Ex Abelita family collection.

The Arabs, following the Roman examples, made great use of these weapons. The efficiency of the weapon appears, for example, from the account of the siege of Akka in 1189, given by the contemporary historian Ibn al-Athir. He tells how the Christians exercised their engineering skill and built mighty beffroys. The situation was hopeless for the defending Arabs until a man from Damascus showed up, because he knew how to produce Greek Fire: ‘To trick the Christians he first threw some vesseIs with naptha and other things, which were not set on fire, upon one of the beffroy’s, and it was without power. The Christians...climbed the top of the beffroy...the man from Damascus waited until the contents of the vessels were spread all over. When the moment came, he threw a new pot, which was set on fire. In a few moments the fire was spread all over, and the beffroy was eaten up by the flames. The fire was spread in such a hurry that the Christians could not manage to climb down from the beffroy. Men, weapons, everything was eaten up by the flames.’

A hollow vessel with cylindrical body, carinated shoulder, short neck and domed mouth, bands of impressed herringbone patterns to the shoulder and waist, piriform lower body; intended to be filled with explosive liquid and a wick, and used as a hand grenade. 463 grams, 17 cm



From a military inspired collection formed from the 1990s.

This piece was a type of ceramic fire grenade, similar to the ones used by the Eastern Romans but of Turco-Mongol type. Apart from the use of manual flame-throwers, special corps of soldiers employed terracotta grenades, in the form of small jars, abundantly evidenced in archaeological excavations.

Including leaf-shaped, barbed, and other types, all tanged, except one socketted. 428 grams total, 9.5-15.6 cm



Ex London, UK, collection, 1990s.

Majority of these arrowheads seem to belong to the type V, subcategory types A and C according to the classification of Khorasani and Negahban. In the four categories of triangular bronze arrowheads from Luristan, Marlik and Northern Iran individuated by Negahban, subtypes A and C of type V are larger arrow heads with barbed shoulders and triangular heads. Very interesting is the socketted type: Greek, dated at the 8th century B.C.

A hollow vessel with cylindrical body, short neck and domed mouth, four raised lugs to the body, bands of impressed dots in-between, raised neck with impressed crescents; intended to be filled with explosive liquid and a wick, and used as a hand grenade. 357 grams, 14.7 cm



From a specialist collection of militaria, London, UK, collected 1990s onwards.

This was a type of ceramic fire grenade, similar to the ones used by the Eastern Romans but of Turco-Mongol type. Apart from the use of manual flame-throwers, special corps of soldiers employed terracotta grenades, in the form of small jars, abundantly evidenced in archaeological excavations.

A piriform ceramic missile with band of impressed roundels to the shoulder, domed filler-hole, intended to be filled with explosive liquid and wick, used as a hand grenade. 367 grams, 12 cm



From a military inspired collection formed from the 1990s. Accompanied by an academic paper by military specialist Dr Raffaele D'Amato, dated 15 July 2019 and titled 'Eastern Roman Empire - Greek Fire Bomb or Hand Grenade (μεσαίον kακάβιον) 9th-11th century AD'.

Apart from the use of siphons or manual flame-throwers called cheirosiphona, special corps of Roman soldiers employed terracotta grenades, in the form of small jars, abundantly evidenced in archaeological excavations. They were called μεσαία kακαβιά or κυτροκακάβια where the former had a bulbous shape and the latter a more cylindrical form.

A spherical ceramic missile with stepped shoulder and impressed annulets, domed filler-hole, intended to be filled with explosive liquid and wick, used as a hand grenade. 494 grams, 12.5 cm



From a military inspired collection formed from the 1990s. Accompanied by an academic paper by military specialist Dr Raffaele D'Amato, dated 15 July 2019 and titled 'Eastern Roman Empire - Greek Fire Bomb or Hand Grenade (μεσαίον kακάβιον) 9th-11th century AD'.

Apart from the use of siphons or manual flame-throwers called cheirosiphona, special corps of Roman soldiers employed terracotta grenades, in the form of small jars, abundantly evidenced in archaeological excavations. They were called μεσαία kακαβιά or κυτροκακάβια where the former had a bulbous shape and the latter a more cylindrical form.

Heater-shaped with barbs to the rear and midrib developing to a tang. 34 grams, 15.6 cm (139 grams total, 16.7 cm high including stand)



Ex Abelita family collection, 1988.