Loading, please wait...
Details
LOT 1493
Late Roman Iron Axehead
4TH-5TH CENTURY A.D.
2 7/8 in. (97 grams, 73 mm).
Small type with broad curved cutting edge, round socket in a triangular frame; narrow neck. [No Reserve]
Provenance
Ex German art market, 2000s.
Acquired from an EU collector living in London.
From the collection of a Surrey, UK, gentleman.
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.
RELATED LOTS
-
Medieval Knight's Iron Hand-and-a-Half Sword with Inscribed Bronze Pommel
Germany, 14th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £14,300
Longsword of Oakeshott's Type XVa, cross style 8, bronze pommel style J (recessed); strongly tapering, pointed blade of ‘flattened diamond’ section, cross style tapering gradually outward to sharply downturned tips; long grip with slight taper, disc pommel with chamfered edges and a potent cross in the centre surrounded by an inscription (on both sides) '+ IH SU + AAWM'. 1.25 kg, 113 cm
From the private family collection of a lady, UK; acquired in Germany mid 20th century. 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 number no.13034-24799.
Some wheel pommels of this date have engraved, or inset roundels with armorial or devotional emblems, and a number of sword blades of this date bear religious inscriptions in the form of a prayer. The inscription on the pommel between the two potent crosses is intriguing. The letters 'IH SU' are a clear reference to the name of the Saviour, and can be translated as Ihesu-Jesus, or also Ihesu Merci (Jesus have mercy), a simple prayer for the person carrying the sword. The letters 'A.A. W.M.' could refer to the name of the owner of the sword (WM = Wilhelm) or the maker of the weapon. It is difficult to consider the letters as an abbreviation of the prayer ‘Ave Maria’, usually shortened in the German medieval inscriptions as A.M. -
Large Greek Socketted Iron Spearhead
Sarissa, circa 3rd-2nd century B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £247
Comprising a leaf-shaped lentoid-section blade and long tubular socket. 826 grams, 38.5 cm
Ex Hermann Historica, 7 October 2009, no.207 (Part). Private collection, Germany. Kept in the UK from 2016. -
Viking Age Iron Socketted Bearded Axehead
Circa 10th-11th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £546
Finely curved, broad blade with square chin to the lower edge, rounded socket with lateral triangular extensions; professionally cleaned, conserved, and restored. 552 grams, 16 cm
From the family collection of a South East London collector; formerly acquired in the late 1950s.
This type of bearded axe seems to correspond to the E2 category of the Viking axe classification, but also has affinity with the Slavic axes of type Y. Usually, these bearded axeheads (skeggöks) had a longer edge, designed to split tree trunks into planks and beams. Some of the bearded axes were known as halfÞynna öx; the neck on such a 'half thin axe' was thinly forged, to make it lighter.
