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_900x900.jpg "Iberian Iron Dagger with Rivetted Hilt")
_200x200.jpg "Iberian Iron Dagger with Rivetted Hilt")
.jpg "Iberian Iron Dagger with Rivetted Hilt")
LOT 0270
Iberian Iron Dagger with Rivetted Hilt
2ND CENTURY B.C.
12 in. (235 grams, 30.6 cm).
A pugio military dagger with waisted leaf-shaped blade, rounded midrib, rectangular rivetted baluster, short grip with crescent pommel.
ProvenanceEx North American private collection, 1970s-1990s.
This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D’Amato.
See Bishop, M.C. & Coulston, J.C.N., Roman military equipment, from the Punic wars to the fall of Rome, London, 1993; Bishop M. C. & Coulston J.C.N., Roman military equipment from the Punic Wars to the fall of Rome, London, 2006; for identical specimen cf. Casprini, F., Saliola, M., Pugio gladius brevis est, storia e tecnologia del pugnale da guerra romano, Roma, 2012, p.103 no.1.
FootnotesThe pugio appeared as a side weapon of the Roman legionary in the 2nd century B.C. However, its full diffusion within the Roman army begun with Caesar and Augustus, where it appeared as the reserve weapon for the heavy infantryman. The present specimen belongs to the Celtiberian tribes who fought against the Roman army in the 2nd century B.C., but represents one of the first prototypes adopted from the Iberians by the Roman legionaries.
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
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