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_900x900.jpg "Luristan Spear Tip Group")
_200x200.jpg "Luristan Spear Tip Group")
.jpg "Luristan Spear Tip Group")
LOT 1417
Luristan Spear Tip Group
13TH-6TH CENTURY B.C.
5 1/4 - 7 1/8 in. (143 grams total, 13.5-18.2 cm).
Comprising four tips with triangular blades; each with a raised midrib and a long tang. [4]
ProvenanceAcquired 1980-2015.
Ex Abelita family collection.
See Muscarella, O.W., Bronze and Iron Ancient Near Eastern Artifacts in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 1988, pp.289ff, for similar arrowheads.
FootnotesAlthough some of them are different in shape, these arrowheads are apparently related types of a polythetic group. Two basic deltoid forms are represented: one has a sharp, flat blade, the ends of which extend to form wings or barbs, and a prominent midrib extending into a long tang that often has a stop; the blade shape varies from deltoid to more manifestly triangular. The other form has no barbs, but it has a prominent midrib extending to the tang, and a narrow leaf-shaped blade.
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Byzantine 'Greek Fire' Ceramic Fire Bomb or Hand Grenade
9th-11th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £91
Piriform body with segmented shoulder and impressed roundels, domed filler-hole, intended to be filled with explosive liquid and wick, used as a hand grenade. 294 grams, 91 mm
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. -
Luristan Bronze Arrowhead Collection
Circa 2nd millennium B.C.-9th century B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £234
Including triangular, leaf-shaped, barbed, square-section, and other types. 446 grams total, 10-17.5 cm
Ex London, UK, collection, 1990s.
It is significant to remember that the use of winged and barbed heads in Anatolia was common since the second millennium B.C., but apparently their employment began earlier in this area, where types like these occur alongside the non-barbed, predominantly ribbed and tanged types. -
Medieval Iron Incendiary Fire Arrowhead with Pierced Cross
Circa 12th-14th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £338
The wide blade with an incised cross motif, pierced through at the end of each arm, long tang with a collar. 37 grams, 12.1 cm
Acquired on the French art market. From the private collection of a Buckinghamshire, UK, gentleman.
The central void was included to allow cloth soaked in tallow to be bound around the arrowhead; this was ignited before shooting.
