Loading, please wait...

Use mousewheel to zoom in and out, click to enlarge

Details

LOT 1481

Large Luristan Bronze Adze-Axehead

2ND-1ST MILLENNIUM B.C.

9 5/8 in. (1.22 kg, 24.5 cm).

With central shaft hole and blade set at right angle.

Provenance

From a 1990s German collection.
Ex London, UK, gallery.

Literature

Cf. Christie's, The Axel Guttmann Collection of Ancient Arms and Armour, part 2, London, 2004, item 34, p.32.

Footnotes

The adze-axe was a fundamental axe of many Bronze Age cultures of the world. Its form was one that lends itself to dual purposes - for war and peace. As a tool, it was used to shape wood in fabricating a variety of objects or even wooden beams for construction. As a weapon, its heavy mass and compact form make it a very deadly striking and chopping weapon, even able to defeat light armour.

CONDITION

VETTING:

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.

LOT 1481

Large Luristan Bronze Adze-Axehead

Sold for (Inc. bp): £130

Print page

RELATED LOTS

  • Western Asiatic Bronze Short Sword with Integral Hilt with Horns
    Western Asiatic Bronze Short Sword with Integral Hilt with Horns
    Late 2nd-1st millennium B.C.

    Estimate: £200 - 300 (+bp*)

    Opening Bid: £100

    A bronze dagger blade with prominently curved guard, which extends out from the ricasso of the blade and partly frames the hilt, thick flat midrib extending slightly above the ricasso where it held the hilt. 466 grams, 53 cm



    Acquired 1980-2015. Ex Abelita family collection.

    The hilt of such swords was made separately, and unfortunately is nearly always missing from the archaeological records. Similar daggers had a northern Iranian background and excavated examples have been recorded from the South Caspian Area from Tomadjan and Ghalekuti.

    Lot Details

  • Luristan Bronze Spike-Butted Axehead
    Luristan Bronze Spike-Butted Axehead
    11th-8th century B.C.

    Estimate: £3,000 - 4,000 (‡+bp*)

    Opening Bid: £1,500

    Blade with folded upper and lower edge, cylindrical socket with projecting ribs formed as the necks and heads of birds, blace 'projecting' from the mouth of a roaring lion at the neck. 478 grams, 22.5 cm



    Ex Parisian private collection. with Cuvreau Expertises Enchères S.A., sale 60, 21 June 2009, lot 105. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate number no.11876-206787.

    Lot Details

  • Byzantine Greek Fire Ceramic Fire Bomb or Hand Grenade
    Byzantine 'Greek Fire' Ceramic Fire Bomb or Hand Grenade
    9th-11th century A.D.

    Sold for (Inc. bp): £169

    Piriform body with domed filler-hole, the upper body decorated with petals radiating from the filler-hole; intended to be filled with explosive liquid and wick, used as a hand grenade. 430 grams, 10.6 cm



    From a specialist collection of militaria, London, UK, collected 1990s onwards. 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'.

    Apart from the use of siphons or manual flame-throwers called cheirosiphona, special corps of Roman soldiers employed terracotta grenades, in the form of small jars, abundantly evidenced in archaeological excavations. They were called μεσαία kακαβιά or κυτροκακάβια where the former had a bulbous shape and the latter a more cylindrical form.

    Lot Details

Stay up-to-date with the latest from TimeLine Auctions by joining our mailing list