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LOT 0928
Byzantine Copper Talisman Pendant with Saint George
CIRCA 6TH-8TH CENTURY A.D.
2 1/2 in. (9.55 grams, 62 mm).
Tongue-shaped pendant with integral loop, obverse with stylised figure of a horseman spearing a creature, lion below and text surrounding 'EIC ΘΕΟϹ Ο ΝΙΚΟΝΤΑ ', reverse with stylised angel and legend '[KONCTA]NTΙΝΟY'.
ProvenanceFrom the collection of a gentleman, acquired on the London art market in the 1990s.
LiteratureCf. for some of the represented symbols on medallions Wamser, L., Die Welt von Byzanz - Europas Östliches Erbe, München, 2004, items 577, 582, 585.
FootnotesThe amulet has a prophylactic element asking the divine protection of a military saint (probably Saint Sisinnius, or Saint George or Saint Theodore) with the inscription 'Winning for God'. The amulet seems to belong to a certain Konstantinos, probably a soldier.
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AUCTIONS:
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Byzantine and Post-Byzantine Bronze Cross Group
7th-19th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £46
Comprising: a cross buckle with pin; the upper plate of a small enkolpion with a praying Virgin or Saint; two orthodox pectoral crosses, both with inscription 'IC' (Iesus) 'XC' (Christos ) 'NIKA' (Christ is victorious); the smallest cross with invocation-prayer engraved on the back. 51.8 grams total, 36-73 mm
Acquired on the UK art market. Property of a Ruislip, UK, gentleman, by inheritance.
The fragment of the simpler Maltese cross mount corresponds to the type E2 of Schulze-Dörrlamm, here with straight arms with rounded corners. It resembles the cross-shaped hinge fittings of the belt buckles from Herrera de Pisuerga and tomb 9 from El Tesorillo from Visigoth Spain, two bronze fittings from Lusitania and the buckle with busts of saints and the Greek inscription 'Light and Life' from Korbous in Tunisia. These kind of buckles were also found in male warrior graves. -
Byzantine 'Greek Fire' Ceramic Fire Bomb or Hand Grenade
9th-11th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £130
Piriform body with band of impressed rosettes to the equator, domed filler-hole, intended to be filled with explosive liquid and wick, used as a hand grenade. 563 grams, 11 cm
From a specialist collection of militaria, London, UK, collected 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'.
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. -
Byzantine Openwork Gold Cross Pendant
Circa 12th-14th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £143
Formed as an equal-armed cross with pellet terminals within a circlet, two small loops below and a large suspension loop above. 1.00 grams, 17 mm
Ex property of a late Japanese collector, 1970-2000s.
