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LOT 0796
Byzantine Bread Stamp Group
6TH-7TH CENTURY A.D.
1 1/2 in. (40.8 grams total, 38 mm each).
A group of two bread stamps: one sub-rectangular in form with Greek capital letters (Mi, Iota, Iota, Tau and Tau, Iota, Eta) in raised relief, suspension lug to reverse; a leaf-shaped stamp with lugs to the perimeter and three raised letters to the centre, suspension lug to reverse. [2]
ProvenanceAcquired before 2000.
From the collection of a European gentleman living in the UK.
Cf. for similar letters, a stamp published by Dalton, O.M., Catalogue of Early Christian Antiquities and Objects from the Christian East in the Department of British and Medieval Antiquities and Ethnography of the British Museum, London, 1901, no.491.
FootnotesThe larger bronze stamps are generally known in the relevant literature as bread stamps. These were used on the bread consecrated during the Holy Liturgy and then given to the believers as the Body of Christ during the Holy Communion, as well as to the bread which was given as a present at the end of the Liturgy, as 'Blessed bread' or Antidoron. Similar seals are still used today in the Orthodox Church.
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AUCTIONS:
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LOT 0796
Byzantine Bread Stamp Group
Estimate £150 - 200€170 - 230 (for guidance only)$200 - 270 (for guidance only)
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Byzantine Silver Inlaid Weight
4th-6th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £234
A bronze square tabular weight with silver inlay; inscribed arch with rosettes above the corners, spiral columns and pointillé detailing; silver-inlaid cross flaked by 'Γ Γ' for a quadrans (3 oz). 80 grams, 37 mm
Acquired 1969-1999. London collection of the late S.M., thence by descent. -
Byzantine Chain with Cross Pendant
Circa 6th-8th century A.D.Estimate: £200 - 300 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £100
A copper-alloy trichinopoly chain with cruciform pendant, decorated on one face with a geometric design representing the five wounds of Christ. 14.5 grams, 40 cm
Acquired in the late 1990s-2000. Property of an East London gentleman. -
Byzantine 'Greek Fire' Fire Bomb or Hand Grenade
9th-11th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £130
A squat ceramic vessel with a piriform body and domed mouth, band of impressed discs to the shoulder; intended to be filled with explosive liquid and wick, used as a hand grenade. 480 grams, 96 mm
Acquired 1980-2015. Ex Abelita family collection. 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. Such were the γανωτα, vessels (sometimes also of bronze) used for Greek fire. They were called μεσαία kακαβιά or κυτροκακάβια where the former had a bulbous shape and the latter a more cylindrical form.
