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LOT 1401
Luristan Sara-Gorz Bronze Macehead
CIRCA 2000-1300 B.C.
8 3/4 in. (456 grams, 22.5 cm).
With long tubular shank and four hefty bulbs surrounding the shaft.
ProvenanceAcquired 1980-2015.
Ex Abelita family collection.
Accompanied by an earlier catalogue identification card.
See Khorasani, M.M., Arms and Armour from Iran. The Bronze Age to the End of the Qajar Period, Tübingen, 2006, item 333, for a similar example in polished heamatite.
FootnotesThis rare and unusual mace finds parallels with similar pieces published by Slotta, Vatandust, and Moorey. The dating varies between 21st and 14th century B.C. Western Iranian maces, especially the Luristan ones, were notable for the variety of different forms. According to Dr D. Nicolle the gorz or mace was primarily used as an armour breaking weapon since ancient times, and was very common on the Iranian plateau.
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Roman Bronze Belt Mount Group
2nd-6th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £286
Comprising: a rectangular plaque with stepped void openwork and scrolled ends; a rectangular mount with rectangular and circular voids; a piriform mount with central void, trefoil to the interior; pierced twice for attachment; a pendant with broad loop, D-shaped plaque with three-lobed void. 70 grams total, 40-74 mm
Acquired before 1980. Ex London, UK collector. Property of a Scottish collector, acquired in 2013.
Belt of Antonine Age incorporated openwork designs, many of which show traces of Celtic decorative influence. According to Bishop & Coulston, these fittings were recognisable as the prototypes for those excavated in the 3rd century Roman military sites. -
Byzantine 'Greek Fire' Ceramic Fire Bomb or Hand Grenade
9th-11th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £286
With domed filler-hole, broad shoulder, alternating bands of crescent impressed detailing; intended to be filled with explosive liquid and wick, used as a hand grenade. 242 grams, 10.1 cm
From a collection acquired on the UK art market from various auction houses and collections mostly before 2000. From an important Cambridgeshire estate; thence by descent. 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. Such were the γανωτα, vessels (sometimes also of bronze) used for Greek fire. They were called μεσαία kακαβιά or κυτροκακάβια where the former had a bulbous shape and the latter a more cylindrical form. -
Western Asiatic Bronze Sword Sheath
2nd-1st millennium B.C.Estimate: £300 - 400 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £150
Triangular in plan, terminating in an exaggerated curving point; the outer face pierced towards the top and with a raised midrib; the convex interior possibly containing fragmentary remains of a weapon. 355 grams, 56 cm
From a Japanese collection, 1990s.
Scabbards with a curve at their base are shown on reliefs and seals from Anatolia from the middle of the second millennium to the 9th century B.C.
