Loading, please wait...
Details
LOT 1424
Luristan Bronze Spearhead with Circumferential Rings
9TH-6TH CENTURY B.C.
10 1/4 in. (199 grams total, 26.2 cm including stand).
With broad leaf-shaped blade and tapering tubular socket, four graduated horizontal rings securing the split socket. [No Reserve]
Provenance
Ex property of a North London, UK, gentleman, 1990s.
Literature
Cf. Overlaet, B., ‘Luristan metalwork in the Iron Age’ in Stöllner, T., Slotta, R. & Vatandoust, A. (eds.), Persiens Antike Pracht. Bergbau - Handwerk – Archäologie, Bochum, 2004, pp. 328-338, fig.7, p.335; Khorasani M.M., Arms and Armour from Iran. The Bronze Age to the End of the Qajar Period, Tübingen, 2006, pp.242-243.
Footnotes
The spear belongs to the type VIII classified by Khorasani (spearheads with well-projecting midribs and long folded sockets) and more specifically to subtype C (with leaf-shaped blade and short hollow socket). Usually the willow-leaf blade has an almost straight shoulder base and a wide, flat midrib tapering towards the point.
CONDITIONVETTING:
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
-
Byzantine 'Greek Fire' Ceramic Fire Bomb or Hand Grenade
9th-11th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £78
Piriform in profile with domed mouth, circumferential band of impressed rosettes to the equator. 459 grams, 13 cm
From a specialist collection of militaria, London, UK, collected 1990s onwards. 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. -
Western Asiatic Bronze Spearhead
2nd millennium B.C.Estimate: £100 - 140 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £50
With foliate blade, rhomboidal in section, raised mid-rib, medium length stem widening at its base and forming a small stop, rectangular-section tang with bent terminal. 595 grams, 41.5 cm
Acquired 1980-2015. Ex Abelita family collection.
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'. Various specimens have been found in the layers of Tepe Hissar III site. -
Luristan Bronze Blade
1200-1100 B.C.Estimate: £250 - 350 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £130
With a long pointed triangular blade and a short tang, two rivet holes at the base of the blade. 193 grams, 36.5 cm
Acquired 1980-2015. Ex Abelita family collection.
The Luri people produced a quantity of fine metalwork, which according to Dr. Khorasani, could be due to a settled period which arose as a result of the defeat of the Elamites by the Babylonians, leaving the Luristani people in relative peace for a period of time after 1200 BC. According to Khorasani 'A culture of innovation and experimentation flourished, and the repertoire of the Luristan smiths expanded in the period between 1150–1050 BC.'