LOT 1350

Arab 'Greek Fire' Ceramic Fire Bomb or Hand Grenade

13TH CENTURY A.D.

4 1/2 in. (610 grams, 11.5 cm).

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. [No Reserve]

Acquired 1980-2015.
Ex Abelita family collection.

Cf. Arendt, W. I., Granaten des 13-14. Jahrhunderts, die an der Wolga gefunden sind, Zeitschrift fur Historische Waffen-und Kostumkunde, 11 (1926-8), p.42; cf. Arendt, W., Die Spharisch-konischen Gefasse aus Gebranntem Ton, ibid; cf. Ayalon, D., Gunpowder and Firearms in the Mamluk Kingdom, London, 1956, p.16; the shape finds correspondence with a fire grenade from Hama, today in the BM, inv.no.1893,1009.38; cf. Pentz, P., 'A medieval workshop for producing 'Greek fire' grenades' in Antiquity, Volume 62, Issue 234, March 1988, pp. 89 - 93.

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.’