Loading, please wait...
Details
LOT 1458
Hellenistic Bronze Cuirass Section
3RD-1ST CENTURY B.C.
9 in. (261 grams, 23 cm).
Possibly the upper right front element of a composite cuirass for a cataphract (armoured horseman), part of the edge around the neck and shoulders preserved, rivets and clasp for attachment of the back section present. [No Reserve]
Provenance
UK private collection, acquired in 1996.
This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.
Literature
Cf. Connolly, P., Greece and Rome at War, London, 2006, figs.p.55-56, for the typology of armour and similar fragments.
Footnotes
A near complete armour for cataphract was found in the French excavations in Al-Khanoum, a Hellenistic city in Afghanistan. The cavalry of Seleucid, Ptolemaic and other Hellenistic Kingdoms formed regiments of heavy armoured horsemen, who in the west, employed a combination of lamellar and segmented armour together with muscled armour of Greek type. Cataphract armour in the West had more Greek element, for example more plate armour and less scale and lamellar.
CONDITIONVETTING:
TimeLine 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:
TimeLine is a leading auction house specialising in antiquities, ancient art, collectables, natural history, coins, medals, and books. Our auctions offer museums, collectors, historians, and enthusiasts the opportunity to acquire unique and historically significant pieces.
RELATED LOTS
-
Luristan Socketted Bronze Axe Head
12th-8th century B.C.Estimate: £500 - 700 (‡+bp*)
Opening Bid: £225
Comprising a wide curving blade and long neck with a band of herringbone decoration at the base, tubular neck with claw-like extension to the rear and a decorative diagonal band to both sides. 308 grams, 10.6 cm
Acquired on the Swiss art market, 1997. Private collection, Europe. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato. -
Luristan Bronze Spearhead
2nd-1st millennium B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £85
Leaf-shaped blade with raised midrib extending to the shaft with a collar, rectangular section tang. 205 grams, 35 cm
Ex North London, UK, collection, 1990s. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato. -
.jpg)
Ibero-Celtic Style Iron Falcata with Inlaid Decoration
19th century A.D. or earlierEstimate: £800 - 1,000 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £400
A single-edged machaira sword of falcata typology, the hilt formed as a gracefully curving horse's head and neck, the blade with deep grooves, inlaid with geometric ornaments on the hilt and blade. 771 grams, 57.7 cm
Ex White Collection, England, 1970s. The Bonnhauser Collection, Zurich, 2003. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.
Since the 5th-4th century BC, the Iberian warriors armed themselves with round shields and single-edged swords (falcatas), gradually adopting the appearance of hoplite armies and the Etruscan version of the machaira. The latter type of sword was duly transformed into a completely new type, with a different size, shape and function, the falcata, which was already in use in the Iberian area by c. 490 BC. This falcata, a type of curved, one-edged sword of supposedly Greek origin, is generally accepted by the scholars as the 'national' weapon of the Iberians, usually suspended on the left side of the warrior, inside a sheath to which sometimes was attached a short knife. It was a terrible cut-and-thrust sword, with an average blade length of 45 cm.
