Mount Athos Wooden Cross with Silver-Gilt Mounts

A Tudor or Stuart period lead-alloy 'hornbook': incomplete rectangular plaque with small rectangular handle; bearing raised, moulded text on the obverse with hatched forms between four registers, which frame the letters of the alphabet 'ABCDE/FG[reversed]HIKL/MNOPq/RST[VW]XYZ'; low-relief octofoil in centre to the reverse. 51 grams, 75 mm



Found Yorkshire, UK. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D’Amato.

The letter 'U' has been omitted from the alphabet as is common with such objects, as has the letter 'J', suggesting that the book was produced prior to the publication of Charles Butler's English Grammar (1633) which first distinguished between I and J. The letter Z is reversed. Hornbooks were employed as learning aids and commonly made from paper mounted onto wood together with a transparent sheet of horn. Smaller, more portable lead-alloy examples such as this one are generally believed to have been mass produced, whilst still falling within the genre of 'hornbooks'. Interestingly, some scholars have argued that the mistakes and inconsistencies found on lead examples rendered them less effective learning tools, used as children's toys in families with low levels of literacy, or possibly serving as dolls' accessories.

Both with two large arched loops for fingers; one with a triangular, the other with a rectangular striking peen; profile formed as a ship with pointed stern and the bow ending in a volute, engraved wave pattern along the hull; mounted on a custom-made display stand. 190 grams total, 18.5 cm wide including stand



German art market, before 2008. Accompanied by a copy of an Art Loss Register certificate no.S00014409. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D’Amato.

These fire strikers represent one of the typical shape during the 17th and 18th centuries. They were shaped with two bows, and were often decorated with a series of ornamental strokes on the side.

Woven fabric panel, possibly a chasuble or other ecclesiastical vestment, in burgundy-red and gold-yellow with supplementary mounting strip to straight edge, braided binding to curved outer edge; mounted on a modern fabric backing. 1.03 kg total, 211 cm



with Sotheby's, London, 26 November 2003, no.204. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D’Amato.