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LOT 0204
Byzantine Green-Glazed Sgraffito Bowl
CIRCA 12TH-15TH CENTURY A.D.
6 in. (322 grams, 15.2 cm).
Broad with basal disc, cream-glazed inner face with green detailing, sgraffito design of tulip flowers and hatched bands. [No Reserve]
ProvenanceFrom a collection acquired on the UK art market from various auction houses and collections mostly before 2000.
From an important Cambridgeshire estate; thence by descent.
Cf. similar item in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, under accession no.10.15.1.
CONDITIONTimeLine Auctions follows a vetting process to ensure the authenticity and legality of all items, reinforcing our commitment to integrity and responsible trading. Each antiquity, antique, and coin lot undergoes thorough examination by a vetting committee of at least ten external specialists, professional trade association members, scientists, and archaeologists: Our Vetting Process
AUCTIONS:
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Byzantine 'Greek Fire' Ceramic Fire Bomb or Hand Grenade
10th-13th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £156
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. 660 grams, 12.8 cm
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. They were called μεσαία kακαβιά or κυτροκακάβια where the former had a bulbous shape and the latter a more cylindrical form. -
Byzantine Bronze Weight Collection
Circa 8th-12th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £98
Including discoid, tabular, cuboid and other types. 125 grams total, 11-25 mm
Ex Simmons gallery, London, UK. Ex North London collection, 1990s. -
Byzantine Bronze Openwork Key
Circa 8th-10th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £2,210
Formed with a hollow bow open to the sides and with lateral struts, each plate pierced with seven equal-arm crosses; pierced lug above for suspension; barrel-type shank with rectangular bit pierced with two similar crosses. 59 grams, 87 mm
From a collection acquired on the UK art market from various auction houses and collections mostly before 2000. From an important Cambridgeshire estate; thence by descent.
The repeated use of the cross symbol may indicate an ecclesiastical use.
