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Details
LOT 1435
Large Mesopotamian Bronze Javelin Head
3RD-2ND MILLENNIUM B.C.
17 3/4 in. (187 grams, 45 cm).
Foliate blade, rhomboidal in section, raised mid-rib, medium length stem widening at the base and forming a small stop, rectangular-section tang with bent terminal.
Provenance
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.
Literature
Cf. Gorelik, M., Weapons of Ancient East, IV millennium BC-IV century BC, Saint Petersburg, 2003, in Russian, see pl.XXXIII, no.82, from Tepe Hissar; Gernez, G., L’armament en métal au Proche et Moyen-Orient: des origines a 1750 av. J.C., Paris, 2007, p.301, fig.2.88, subtype L2.B.b.
Footnotes
The specimen belongs to the category of tripartite spears with long pointed biconvex blade and single bevelled tang. They seem to be a Mesopotamian and Susian (Elamite) variant, and this type also includes decorated blades, like the spear from Tello with the inscription 'King of Kish'.
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Foliate blade, rhomboidal in section, raised mid-rib, medium length stem widening at the base and forming a small stop, rectangular-section tang with bent terminal. 187 grams, 45 cm
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The now empty cavities of the handle were once filled with organic material.
