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Details
LOT 0335
Large Medieval Silver Inlaid Iron Spearhead
15TH-16TH CENTURY A.D.
16 1/2 in. (693 grams, 42 cm).
Comprising: a hexagonal-section tapering socket, lentoid-section neck and leaf-shaped blade; inlaid silver-wire scrolled tendril detailing to the socket and neck. [No Reserve]
Provenance
Private collection formed in Europe in the 1980s.
Westminster collection, central London, UK.
This lot has been cleared against the Art Loss Register database, and is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.
Literature
Cf. for identical typology the spearhead of Zerotina Family in Yotov, V., 'Žerotína family spearhead from Bulgaria (first half of 16th century)'. in Ławrynowicz, O., Maik, J., Nowakowski, P. A. (ed.), Non sensistis gladios. Studia ofiarowane Marianowi Głoskowi w 70. rocznicę urodzin, Łódź, 2011, pp.487-493.
Footnotes
The spearhead likely belonged to a family fighting in the Balkanic wars among Christian and Ottomans in the late 15th century A.D. Spears with such shape are dated to the 16th century and are defined by specialists as ‘schefflin’ type. The ornament of the blade imitates Ottoman decorative models.
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