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LOT 1450
Amlash Type Bronze Spear-Head
12TH-11TH CENTURY B.C.
14 3/8 in. (300 grams, 36.5cm).
Leaf-shaped blade and rectangular-section shank developing from the raised midrib, flared below with a rectangular-section tang.
ProvenanceEx London art market, 1980-1990s.
This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.
See Khorasani, M.M., Arms and Armour from Iran. The Bronze Age to the End of the Qajar Period, Tübingen, 2006, s. cat 280, for type.
FootnotesThe weapon belongs to the type 1 of the spear-head classification of Khorasani, mainly from Marlik or Amlash areas. Similar pieces have been dated by Stutzinger to 1200-1100 B.C.
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LOT 1450
Amlash Type Bronze Spear-Head
Estimate £100 - 140€120 - 160 (for guidance only)$140 - 190 (for guidance only)
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Greek and Other Bronze Arrowhead Collection
Circa 5th-3rd century B.C.Estimate: £100 - 140 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £56
The group comprising triangular trilobate types, all socketted. 63.5 grams total, 24-42 mm
Ex London art market, 1980-1990s. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.
In the Greek warfare, archers were mainly employed by Scythians and Cretans. Both used composite bows made of wood, horn, bone and sinew. This explains the great range of Scythian arrowheads found on the Greek sites. -
Viking Silver Inlaid Iron Weight
9th-11th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £338
Polyhedral weight bearing Insular Style inlaid decoration in the form of serpentine creatures in tondos, on a silver inlaid background. 176 grams, 38 mm
Private collection formed in Europe in the 1980s. Westminster collection, central London, UK. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.
These weights were adopted by the Vikings from Middle Eastern examples and appear to have become a typical weight standard for traders. They are, in archaeology, an important form of evidence for the Viking commerce. Many of them, like those found in Ireland and of Arabic type, suggest a standardised system of weights in different areas. -
Byzantine 'Greek Fire' Ceramic Fire Bomb or Hand Grenade
9th-11th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £117
Bulbous in profile with domed mouth; circumferential band of concentric circles to the shoulder, annulets and regularly arranged lines in groups of three to the body; intended to be filled with explosive liquid and wick, used as a hand grenade. 516 grams, 11.9 cm
From an important specialist collection, London, UK, 1990s onwards. 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'. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.
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.
