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LOT 0194
Late Byzantine Silver Spoon with 'St Peter' Inscription on the Handle
LATE 6TH-8TH CENTURY A.D.
8 1/2 in. (60.77 grams, 21.5 cm).
Featuring a large, shallow piriform bowl, stepped junction with a boar's head above, a hexagonal-section stem extending from behind the boar's neck bearing a Greek inscription 'TTETPOY' (of Peter); a balustered handle with a cuboid, striated finial.
ProvenanceAcquired on the UK art market.
Private collection, Surrey, UK.
Cf. Shelton, K.J., The Esquiline Treasure, London, 1981, item 27, for type; Wamser, L., Die Welt von Byzanz - Europas Östliches Erbe, München, 2004, item 909.
FootnotesThe inscription suggests that the spoon may have had a liturgical purpose, associated with the Holy Communion. Still today in the Orthodox Church, the Body and Blood of Christ are dispensed with similar liturgical objects. The name Peter can be associated with the church, or simply with the owner of the liturgical artefact.
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AUCTIONS:
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LOT 0194
Late Byzantine Silver Spoon with 'St Peter' Inscription on the Handle
Estimate £800 - 1,000€930 - 1,160 (for guidance only)$1,080 - 1,350 (for guidance only)
Opening Bid
£400 (EUR 464; USD 540) +BP*
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Circa 10th-12th century A.D.Estimate: £60 - 80 (+bp*)
Bids: 1 | Current Bid: £5
The hoop expanding towards the shoulders, an oval bezel with a standing eagle with spread wings. 6.42 grams, 21.46 mm overall, 17.81 mm internal diameter (approximate size British O 1/2, USA 7 1/4, Europe 15.61, Japan 15)
Ex German art market, 2000s. Acquired from an EU collector living in London. From the collection of a Surrey, UK, gentleman. -
Byzantine 'Greek Fire' Ceramic Fire Bomb or Hand Grenade
9th-11th century A.D.Estimate: £80 - 100 (+bp*)
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Bulbous body with pointed base and domed mouth, two circumferential bands on the shoulder; intended to be filled with explosive liquid and a wick, and used as a hand grenade. 378 grams, 10.3 cm
From an important specialist collection, London, UK, 1990s. 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. -
Byzantine Inscribed Bone Plaque
Circa 6th-10th century AD.Estimate: £80 - 100 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £44
Obverse with low-relief bust wearing conical headgear, with trefoil sceptre and hatched robe; reverse with legend 'ΚΕΒΟΗΙΤΟ' ('T' inverted). 3.12 grams, 38 mm
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