Loading, please wait...
Details
LOT 1495
Massive Amlash Bronze Spearhead Blade
13TH-12TH CENTURY B.C.
16 3/4 in. (370 grams, 42.5 cm).
With large ovate blade, broad midrib, rounded shoulders and rectangular-section tang with bent tip ending with a button.
Provenance
Acquired 1980-2015.
Ex Abelita family collection.
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.
Literature
See Khorasani M.M., Arms and Armour from Iran. The Bronze Age to the End of the Qajar Period, Tübingen, 2006, item 278, for type.
Footnotes
The massive spearhead belongs to type 1 of the Khorasani classification. Similar excavated examples from Marlik attest the use of such spearheads with bent tang in the area, and Stutzinger dated such weapons to 1200-1100 B.C. The type was the evolution of a typology which began much earlier in Mesopotamia and the fertile crescent, the type 4 of the Stronach classification, with straight square-section tang, usually thickened at the base with a button tang.
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
-
Oriental European Iron Armour Sections
10th-14th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £33
Consisting of a square dorsal plate and a spherical shoulder protection, the dorsal plate with one of the fixing holes present. 790 grams total, 12.7-20 cm
UK private collection, acquired in 1996. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.
Although this is a type of armour that currently has no parallels for its dorsal plate, the spherical shoulder protection finds some comparable items with fragments of armour from the Balkans and could correspond to the melon of Eastern Roman sources of the period. -
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. -
Large Western Asiatic Bronze Arrowhead and Dagger Collection
1800-700 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £156
Including mainly triangular and leaf-shaped types of arrowheads, and two small daggers with pierced tang. 251 grams total, 10.5-17 cm
Ex London art market, 1980-1990s. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.
Small tanged blades without a rivet, which have sometimes been identified as spearheads, are knives, while the rivetted form could have been used as a dagger or for domestic purposes. Both forms are characteristic of the Hyksos period in Palestine. A curious blade from Byblos (Level 19) represents the earlier form of this type.