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LOT 1424
Luristan Bronze Dirk
13TH-12TH CENTURY B.C.
13 3/8 in. (174 grams, 34 cm).
With lentoid-section blade, tongue-shaped in plan, integral tapering hilt with flared finial, lateral flanges to accept a panel of bone or wood to each face forming the grip.
ProvenanceEx Joseph J. Gancie (1923-2010), Washington, Silver Spring, Maryland.
with Alex Cooper Auctioneers Inc., sale 1035, 27 January 2013, lot 162a.
Cf. Khorasani, M.M., Arms and Armour from Iran - The Bronze Age to the End of the Qajar Period, Tübingen, 2006, p.377, cat.6.
FootnotesThe dirk belongs to the type III in the Medvedskaya classification, used in Near East from the 13th to the 6th century B.C. The type is the 32a of the Maxwell-Hyslop study. The Asiatic daggers of this type are confined to Syria and Persia, but Transcaucasia also provides an interesting analogy from Kalekent on the Baku peninsula, where a pointed straight-sided dagger blade has a flanged hilt with the whole of the side flanges bent over the centre.
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LOT 1424
Luristan Bronze Dirk
Estimate £300 - 400€350 - 460 (for guidance only)$410 - 540 (for guidance only)
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Luristan Bronze Dirk
13th-12th century B.C.Estimate: £300 - 400 (‡+bp*)
Opening Bid: £167
With lentoid-section blade, tongue-shaped in plan, integral tapering hilt with flared finial, lateral flanges to accept a panel of bone or wood to each face forming the grip. 174 grams, 34 cm
Ex Joseph J. Gancie (1923-2010), Washington, Silver Spring, Maryland. with Alex Cooper Auctioneers Inc., sale 1035, 27 January 2013, lot 162a.
The dirk belongs to the type III in the Medvedskaya classification, used in Near East from the 13th to the 6th century B.C. The type is the 32a of the Maxwell-Hyslop study. The Asiatic daggers of this type are confined to Syria and Persia, but Transcaucasia also provides an interesting analogy from Kalekent on the Baku peninsula, where a pointed straight-sided dagger blade has a flanged hilt with the whole of the side flanges bent over the centre. -
Turco-Mongol 'Greek Fire' Ceramic Fire Bomb or Hand Grenade
13th-15th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £59
A hollow vessel with cylindrical body, carinated shoulder, short neck and domed mouth, bands of impressed herringbone patterns to the shoulder and waist, piriform lower body; intended to be filled with explosive liquid and a wick, and used as a hand grenade. 619 grams, 16.5 cm
From a specialist collection of militaria, London, UK, collected 1990s onwards.
This was a type of ceramic fire grenade, similar to the ones used by the Eastern Romans but of Turco-Mongol type. Apart from the use of manual flame-throwers, special corps of soldiers employed terracotta grenades, in the form of small jars, abundantly evidenced in archaeological excavations. -
Byzantine 'Greek Fire' Ceramic Fire Bomb or Hand Grenade
9th-11th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £98
A piriform ceramic missile with a band of impressed bars and triangles, with domed filler-hole, intended to be filled with explosive liquid and wick, used as a hand grenade. 913 grams, 13.5 cm
From a military inspired collection formed from the 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.
