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LOT 0204
Byzantine Gold Inlaid Ceremonial Axe Head
CIRCA 9TH-12TH CENTURY A.D.
4 1/4 in. (28.88 grams, 10.9 cm).
A miniature tzikourion comprising a crescentic blade with long neck, flared socket and leaf-shaped blade to the rear; gilt surface with reserved florid and tendril detailing, stylised cross to the flared socket.
ProvenancePrivate collection formed in Europe in the 1980s.
Westminster collection, central London, UK.
Accompanied by an academic report by Dr Raffaele D’Amato.
This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate no. no.12340-225024.
See similar forms (iconography) in Nicolle, Arms and Armour of the Crusading Era, 1050-1350 AD, volume II, Islam, Eastern Europe and Asia, London, 1999, figs.33p &118c, pp.355 and 373; for battle specimens from the territories of Eastern Roman Empire cf. Yotov, V., Въоръжението и снаряжението от българското средновековие (VII-XI век), (Arms in Bulgaria in medieval period, 7th – 12th century), Варна 2004, no.637; Gorelik, M., ‘Arms and Armour in South-Eastern Europe in the Second Half of First Millennium AD’ in Nicolle, D. (ed.), A Companion to Medieval Arms and Armour, Oxford, 2002, pp.127-148, pl.XL-8, nos.33 ,34 (Khazar Khanate equipment).
FootnotesIt is possible that this axe was used as a status symbol for officers or their family. The axe was known to be a symbol of the Varangian Guard who protected the emperor.
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Byzantine Bronze Weight with Inscriptions
6th-8th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £33
Obverse with impressed text 'ΔΟΜΟ/Χ'. 7.9 grams, 14 mm
From the collection of a gentleman, acquired on the London art market in the 1990s. -
Byzantine Hexagonal Bronze Censer Base
5th-7th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £130
With flared and stepped rim and foot; pierced for attachment; carbonised accretion within. 194 grams, 80 mm
From a family collection mostly formed in the 1940s-1950s, thence by descent. -
Byzantine Terracotta Pilgrim Flask with a Saint
6th century A.D.Estimate: £1,200 - 1,700 (‡+bp*)
Opening Bid: £600
Piriform in profile with two thick lug handles to the shoulder, obverse with low-relief facing figure holding a large cross and orb, reverse with facing figure with hand held up in the orans posture; with a display stand. 47.2 grams, 77 mm (71.4 grams total, 91 mm including stand)
Ex private collection, Mrs L.S., 1990s. Acquired from the above, 2001. Private European collection. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by a search certificate number no.12110-218216.
