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LOT 1390
Byzantine 'Greek Fire' Ceramic Fire Bomb or Hand Grenade
10TH-13TH CENTURY A.D.
5 1/8 in. (472 grams, 13 cm).
Piriform body decorated with concentric circles, with sphero-conical filler-hole, intended to be filled with explosive liquid and wick, used as a hand grenade. [No Reserve]
ProvenanceAcquired 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'.
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 fragment of a clay granade from Rhodes (4th EBA storerooms, inv. ПХ 2832), cf. Various, Byzantium and the Arabs,Thessaloniki, 2011, p.64.
FootnotesApart 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.
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AUCTIONS:
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LOT 1390
Byzantine 'Greek Fire' Ceramic Fire Bomb or Hand Grenade
Sold for (Inc. bp): £208
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Western Asiatic Bronze Arrowhead Group
2nd-1st millennium B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £117
Comprising fifteen tanged examples, including one slender arrowhead in iron. 112 grams total, 44-75 mm
Acquired 1980-2015. Ex Abelita family collection. -
Viking Iron Bearded Axehead
Circa 9th-11th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £208
With scooped socket flanked by lateral wings, broad blade with chin and spur to the lower edge; possibly Baltic workmanship. 470 grams, 15 cm
From the private collection of a London gentleman, from his grandfather's collection formed before the early 1970s. -
Luristan Bronze Arrowhead Group
13th-6th century B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £221
Mainly tanged examples of barbed and leaf-shaped types. 220 grams total, 7.5-13.6 cm
Acquired 1990s. From the collection of a late Japanese weaponry collector.
Although some of them are different in shape, these arrowheads are apparently related types of a polythetic group. Two basic deltoid forms are represented: one has a sharp, flat blade, the ends of which extend to form wings or barbs, and a prominent midrib extending into a long tang that often has a stop; the blade shape varies from deltoid to more manifestly triangular. The other form has no barbs, but it has a prominent midrib extending to the tang, and a narrow leaf-shaped blade.
