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LOT 1488
Ibero-Celtic Style Iron Falcata with Inlaid Decoration
19TH CENTURY A.D. OR EARLIER
22 3/4 in. (771 grams, 57.7 cm).
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.
ProvenanceEx 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.
For originals see Quesada Sanz, F., El armamento Ibérico, Madrid, 1991; Quesada Sanz, F., Arma y símbolo: la falcata Ibérica, Alicante, 1992; Quesada Sanz, F., 'Patterns of interaction, Celtic and Iberian weapons in Iron Age Spain', in Celtic connections, volume 2, papers from the Tenth International Congress of Celtic Studies, Edinburgh, 1995, Edinburg, 2005.
FootnotesSince 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.
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LOT 1488
Ibero-Celtic Style Iron Falcata with Inlaid Decoration
Estimate £800 - 1,000€930 - 1,160 (for guidance only)$1,080 - 1,350 (for guidance only)
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Greek Period High Quality Large Bronze Arrowhead Collection
5th-3rd century B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £65
Mostly long leaf-shaped types with short socket. 50 grams total, 30-45 mm
From an English collection formed before 2000. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato. -
Western Asiatic Stone Macehead
3rd-2nd millennium B.C.Estimate: £80 - 100 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £44
Toroid and drilled vertically to accommodate a wooden shaft. 453 grams, 74 mm
From the collection of a London, UK, gentleman, 1990s. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D’Amato. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato. -
Greek and Other Bronze Arrowhead Collection
Circa 5th-3rd century B.C.Estimate: £100 - 140 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £56
The group comprising triangular trilobate types, all socketted. 63.5 grams total, 24-42 mm
Ex London art market, 1980-1990s. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.
In the Greek warfare, archers were mainly employed by Scythians and Cretans. Both used composite bows made of wood, horn, bone and sinew. This explains the great range of Scythian arrowheads found on the Greek sites.
