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LOT 1059
Large Luristan Socketted Adze-Axehead
13TH-7TH CENTURY B.C.
10 1/4 in. (1.43 kg, 26 cm).
With central socket and shaft; cutting blade set vertically at a right-angle; the short pick-adze blade arranged horizontally.
ProvenanceAcquired 1980-2015.
Ex Abelita family collection.
Cf. Christie's, The Axel Guttmann Collection of Ancient Arms and Armour, part 2, London, 2004, items 21, 34.
FootnotesThe earliest axes-adzes from the 3rd millennium B.C. were weapons and tools furnished with socket holes. Usually the socket is a more secure way of attaching the object to a wooden haft than having a tang. These weapons developed into a plethora of different forms in the 2nd millennium B.C., and the numerous new forms and were used until at least 800 B.C.
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Viking Age Iron Socketted Spearhead
11th-12th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £234
Type N leaf-shaped slender blade, with flattened transition area between blade and socket, continuing far up onto the blade. 255 grams, 39 cm
Ex private collection of Mr M.B., Mainz, Germany, since the 1980s. Acquired from the above, 2004.
The spearheads of type N were a minor group in the Viking spearheads, found throughout the whole of the 10th century A.D. They make up circa 10% of the Viking Age spears. -
Medieval Bronze Dagger Quillon with Scallop Shell
Circa 13th-16th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £59
With four-lobed finials, slot to the body, short arm with D-shaped scallop guard. 41 grams, 52 mm
Acquired on the UK art market in the 1990s. Property of a Stowmarket, UK, gentleman. -
Roman Iron Spatha with Remains of Scabbard and Chape
4th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £3,900
With a double-edged blade of Illerup-Wyhl Type, narrow parallel cutting edges tapering towards the point; remains of wooden scabbard on the blade and remains of wooden grip on the hilt; accompanied by a crescent-shaped iron chape. 1.02 kg total, 6.5-94.5 cm
From the private collection of a London gentleman, from his grandfather's collection formed before the early 1970s. Accompanied by an academic report by Dr Raffaele D’Amato. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate no.11924-209661.
The iconographic sources indicate that Roman swords changed in the later 2nd and 3rd centuries A.D. Longer swords, which were more popular within Germanic and Celtic cultures and more useful for fighting on horseback, were soon widespread among infantry units and mass-produced in the Roman workshops. They were brought home by foreigners after mercenary or auxiliary service in the Roman army. This, together the possibility of war booty, may explain why a great number of these swords have been found in the distant areas such as Nydam Mose, Eisbøl and Illerup Adal, all in modern Denmark.
