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LOT 1424
Khandjar Type Iron Dagger
19TH CENTURY A.D.
12 1/2 in. (118 grams, 32 cm long).
Curved with a thick double edge blade, handle composed of wood and iron, ornately decorated with lozenges, fastened by eight iron flat-headed rivets.
ProvenancePrivate family collection formed in London, mid 1980s to early 1990s.
LiteratureSee similar blades in Lebedynsky, J., Les Armes Orientales, Langres, 1992, pp.107ff.
FootnotesAmong the various Arab dagger groups, the one from North Africa is characterised by rather fine blades made in the Turkish-Persian style. Usually the handles (in wood, ivory and metal) feature a large rounded pommel in the guise of peacock feathers. This type is common in Morocco, Tunisia and all the way to Egypt, and is a type of Khandjar usually called Koummiya or Goummiya (a term later adopted in Spanish as Goumia, to indicate all the short Arab daggers).
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LOT 1424
Khandjar Type Iron Dagger
Estimate £150 - 200€170 - 230 (for guidance only)$200 - 270 (for guidance only)
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Byzantine 'Greek Fire' Ceramic Fire Bomb or Hand Grenade
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Piriform body with domed filler-hole; intended to be filled with explosive liquid and wick, used as a hand grenade. 580 grams, 12.5 cm
From a collection acquired on the UK art market from various auction houses and collections mostly before 2000. From an important Cambridgeshire estate; thence by descent. 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'.
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