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LOT 1705
Medieval Iron Knife with Bronze Pommel
LATE 14TH CENTURY A.D.
7 1/4 in. (31 grams, 18.3 cm).
Comprising a single cutting edge; scale tang with pommel formed as a bifacial crown with incised detailing; Netherlands.
ProvenanceAcquired 1960s-1990s.
Late Alison Barker collection, a retired London barrister.
Marquardt, K., Eight Centuries of European Knives, Forks and Spoons: an Art Collection, Europe, 1997, p.32, item 69, for type.
FootnotesKnife handles can be classified according to their method of attachment into whittle and scale-tang handles. Whittle-tang handles were the most common type used in the early medieval period. Whittle tang handles (like here) were more common later and fixed by pushing the pointed end of the knife tang into the handle.
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AUCTIONS:
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LOT 1705
Medieval Iron Knife with Bronze Pommel
Estimate £200 - 300€230 - 350 (for guidance only)$270 - 410 (for guidance only)
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Medieval Iron Blade and Other Item Group
15th-17th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £65
Mainly comprising sickles and cleavers, together with other miscellaneous items. 5.5 kg total, 28-67 cm
Acquired 1990s-early 2000s. East Anglian private collection. -
Large Medieval Bronze Ecclesiastical Seal Matrix
14th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £260
Depicting a female saint at the centre, standing right on a bird, uncertain inscription in right field, enigmatic surrounding legend: 'S : FRIS : ROPOAYM POR : DE NORTOR/E'; suspension loop and rib to reverse; accompanied by a museum-quality impression. 16.8 grams, 41 mm
Found by eye in Widford Parish in the 1970s, next to the old Salt Way to the Royal Parish of Bampton, Oxfordshire, UK. Accompanied by a print out about Widford and the church of St. Oswald, Oxon. -
Medieval Iron Knife with Bronze Pommel
Circa 1500 A.D.Estimate: £200 - 300 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £80
Comprising a single cutting edge and scale tang; bifacial pommel engraved with a female figure to one face and an enigmatic design to the other. 35 grams, 17 cm
Acquired 1960s-1990s. Late Alison Barker collection, a retired London barrister.
There were four essential ways to carry the small knifes in late Middle Ages: a) with the scabbard tucked diagonally behind belt, without suspension loop; b) without scabbard, simply thrust through the purse of the belt; c) with the scabbard tied horizontally at waist with suspension holes in the widened handle flap; d) suspended vertically from thong looped over the belt, in the scabbard.
