Details

LOT 1866

Greek Lead Slingshot with X

4TH-3RD CENTURY B.C.

1 1/2 in. (30.4 grams, 37 mm).

Biconical in profile with casting seam and Greek legend '...X...' to one face. [No Reserve]

Provenance

Ex German art market, 2000s.
Acquired from an EU collector living in London.
From the collection of a Surrey, UK, gentleman.

Literature

Cf. Schinco, G., Small, A.M., 'A previously unknown siege of Botromagno/Silvium: the evidence of slingshots from Gravina in Puglia (Provincia di Bari, Puglia)' in Papers of the British School at Rome, 2019, pp.1-52, fig.6, 37 (type Volling IIb).

Footnotes

Greek bullets were cast in two-part moulds. Clay and stone moulds survive; metal moulds are much rarer in the archaeological records. The mould halves carry the negative of the bullet’s shape, often in rows, so that multiple bullets can be made at once. A narrow gate at the tip of each negative lets molten lead run into the cavity. After cooling, the caster opens the mould and breaks the sprue that links the bullets.