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LOT 0315
Elamite Bronze Macehead Inscribed 'To Nin’azu, Bala, son of Lugal-kare-si'
EARLY DYNASTIC IIIB PERIOD, CIRCA 2500-2340 B.C.
4 1/2 in. (350 grams, 11.6 cm).
Comprising a cylindrical shaft with a narrow flanged base, the upper section with three vertical relief panels decorated by round spikes alternated with a wavy pattern, divided and bordered by parallel ridges, engraved with five lines of Sumerian cuneiform text around the socket, a votive inscription translating to: 'To Nin’azu, Bala, son of Lugal-kare-si, the merchant, has presented (it)'.
ProvenanceAcquired before 1983.
Ex London gallery, 1990s.
Private collection, London, UK.
This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate number no.13257-253385.
Cf. for similar items Gorelik, M., Weapons of Ancient East, IV millennium BC-IV century BC, Saint Petersburg, 2003, pl.XXX, no.82, from Mesopotamia; Christie's, The Axel Guttmann Collection of Ancient Arms and Armour, part 1, London, 2002, item 18, p.24.
FootnotesThis gorz mace head belongs to the category of truncheon-shaped mace heads, a type developed on the Iranian plateau during the Bronze Age, used by Elamite and Luristan warriors since the 3rd millennium B.C. This category of objects was also interpreted as a part of a shaft or cudgel, but most scholars agree on the interpretation of use as a mace.
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AUCTIONS:
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LOT 0315
Elamite Bronze Macehead Inscribed 'To Nin’azu, Bala, son of Lugal-kare-si'
Sold for (Inc. bp): £2,340
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Canaanite Bronze Axehead
Bronze Age, 2000-1200 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £65
Comprising a slender rectangular-section blade and an ellipsoid socket with a flared lower edge. 116 grams, 12 cm
From the private collection of a European gentleman (1942-2024), formed since the 1970s. -
'Bourton-on-the-Water' Celtic Sword-Shaped Iron Currency Ingot
Iron Age, circa 200 B.C.-1st century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £338
A substantial long iron bar in the shape of a sword with the original short folded-over handle to one end. 561 grams, 82 cm
Found Bourton-on-the-Water, Gloucestershire, UK, during the period between WWI and WWII. Property of the finder's family until sold by regional auction house, Tayler & Fletcher in Bourton-On-The-Water. From the private collection of a Stratford-upon-Avon, UK, gentleman.
Currency bars were standardised units used to trade in Iron Age Britain between circa 200 B.C.-1st century A.D. They were often sword-shaped and were used as a form of early currency or trade commodity in Iron Age Britain before coinage became widespread, serving as a store of wealth and medium of exchange. These high-status objects, requiring significant labour (25 man-days/kg), often featured a socket or hilt, possibly to show quality. Types including spit, sword, plough, and bay-leaf shapes have been found in hoards at hillforts like Hod Hill and Danebury. -
Western Asiatic Bronze Tanged Spearhead
12th-11th century B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £195
Comprising a triangular blade with a facetted, flaring neck and a rectangular-section tang. 288 grams, 30 cm
Ex Abelita family collection, 1980s-2000s.
The weapon belongs to the type 1 of the spear-head classification of Khorasani, mainly originating from Marlik or Amlash areas. Similar pieces have been dated by Stutzinger to 1200-1100 B.C.
