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LOT 2035
Greek Lead Slingshot Inscribed AIN
3RD-2ND CENTURY B.C.
1 in. (29.1 grams, 27 mm).
Biconical in profile, inscribed with capital letters AIN on one face.
ProvenanceFrom a German private collection, formed since the 1980s.
LiteratureSee Weiss, P. and N. Draskowski, Neue griechische Schleuderbleie. Tissaphernes und weitere Kommandeure, Chiron 40, 2010, pp. 131 no. 9.
FootnotesInscription 'AIN' can be either the abbreviation of a personal name like Aineas ( the Trojan hero Aeneas) or maybe referring to the Ainianes, the people of Ainis.
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LOT 2035
Greek Lead Slingshot Inscribed AIN
Estimate £100 - 140€120 - 160 (for guidance only)$140 - 190 (for guidance only)
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Byzantine 'Greek Fire' Ceramic Fire Bomb or Hand Grenade
9th-11th century A.D.Estimate: £70 - 90 (+bp*)
Bids: 1 | Current Bid: £5
Ovoid body with rounded base and domed filler hole; intended to be filled with explosive liquid and a wick, and used as a hand grenade. 425 grams, 10.9 cm
Ex important collection of weaponry, London, UK, 1980-1990s. 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. -
Beja or Hadendoa Curved Dagger with Sheath
Sudan, late 19th-early 20th century A.D.Estimate: £80 - 100 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £5
Comprising a thin leaf-shaped two-edged blade with curved tip in an X-shaped wooden hilt with carved fluting; leather sheath with stamped detailing and suspension ring to reverse. 140 grams, 26.5 cm
From the private collection of Peter Clayton, FCILIP, Dip, Arch, FSA, FRNS, Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, UK; formed since the late 1950s. -
Luristan Bronze Sword Blade
Circa 6th-4th century B.C.Estimate: £300 - 400 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £150
Tapering leaf-shaped type with raised flat-section midrib in the upper third, rounded shoulders with short rectangular-section tang pierced at the upper end; lower blade lozenge-section with light bulb at the point. 358 grams, 46.8 cm
Ex Abelita collection, 1980s-2010.
