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LOT 1499
Luristan Gilt-Bronze Horse Bit Terminal
13TH-7TH CENTURY B.C.
3 5/8 in. (117 grams, 92 mm).
Tubular bronze body with stepped profile, topped with an ibex head with curved horns, square-section perpendicular shank; some gilding remaining.
ProvenanceAcquired before 1983.
Ex London gallery, 1990s.
This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D’Amato.
This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.
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AUCTIONS:
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LOT 1499
Luristan Gilt-Bronze Horse Bit Terminal
Estimate £150 - 200€170 - 230 (for guidance only)$200 - 270 (for guidance only)
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Large Viking Age Iron Broken-Backed Knife 'Seax' Blade
8th-10th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £117
With scooped forward edge, straight single edge and arched triangular back; transverse mounting tang. 208 grams, 37.5 cm
From a North American collection formed in the 1970s-1990s. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.
This knife seems to be of type IV, like the one found in the Thames at Wandsworth. Based on its similarities with a specimen from Canterbury, it could be dated to the 8th century A.D. Underwood classifies these kind of knives under the typology C (angled back-curved cutting edge) dating them from the mid 6th to early 8th century A.D. -
Eastern Viking Period Laten Inlaid Iron Axehead
9th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £5,200
With narrow straight blade, shank to the rear with square hammer-face, inlaid geometric and vegetal ornaments. 275 grams, 17.7 cm
Private collection formed in Europe in the 1980s. Westminster collection, central London, UK. This lot has been cleared against the Art Loss Register database, and is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.
Battle-axes came into use in Scandinavia, especially in the Eastern parts of Sweden, Gotland and Denmark. Among the types, there were narrow-bladed types described to be very light in the sources. They could weigh as little as 200-250 grams, making them suitable for single-handed use. Some of them were decorated according to the Slavic taste. -
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Turco-Mongol 'Greek Fire' Ceramic Fire Bomb or Hand Grenade
13th-15th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £130
A hollow vessel with cylindrical body, short neck and domed mouth, impressed herringbone decoration to the body; intended to be filled with explosive liquid and a wick, and used as a hand grenade. 452 grams, 18 cm
From an important specialist collection, London, UK, 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'. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.
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.
