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LOT 1443
Roman Julius Caesar 'Battle of Munda' Lead Slingshot
45 B.C.
1 1/4 in. (32.7 grams, 33 mm).
A biconical facetted lentoid-section lead sling shot (glans), inscription monogram a combination of letters 'C', 'A' and 'E', for 'C A E S' referring to Julius Caesar. [No Reserve]
ProvenanceAcquired on the UK art market.
Property of a gentleman collector.
Accompanied by an academic paper by military specialist Dr Raffaele D'Amato, dated 4th May 2022 and titled 'Roman Res Publica - Lead Slingshots (glandes) of Caesarian Age - 45 B.C circa'.
This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.
Cf. D'Amato, R. and Sumner, G., Arms and Armour of the Imperial Roman Soldier: From Marius to Commodus, 112 BC-AD 192, London, 2009, fig.32, p.45, for similar glandes from Zaragoza Museum, one with the name of Pompey inscribed also coming from Munda battlefield; Schinco, G., Small, A.M., 'A previously unknown siege of Botromagno/Silvium: the evidence of slingshots from Gravina in Puglia (Provincia di Bari, Puglia)' in Papers of the British School at Rome, 2019, pp.1-52, figs.31, 37.
FootnotesThe shot (type IIb of the Völling classification) is marked with the abbreviated name of Julius Caesar; it was used in quantity at the Battle of Munda (or Monda) against the last fellows of Pompey, the leaders of the Optimates, on the 17th March 45 BC. Similar shots were used in the Caesar's wars. The slingers of Caesar's age were part of the light infantry. Caesar speaks of his Balearic slingers during the conquest of Gaul. They wore a short tunic, with leather or rope sandals to the feet, and a warm overcoat which could also have been used to store projectiles. They also used a satchel to carry very deadly lead-like stones or bullets.
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AUCTIONS:
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LOT 1443
Roman Julius Caesar 'Battle of Munda' Lead Slingshot
Sold for (Inc. bp): £390
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Byzantine 'Greek Fire' Ceramic Fire Bomb or Hand Grenade
9th-11th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £117
Bulbous in profile with domed mouth; circumferential band of concentric circles to the shoulder, annulets and regularly arranged lines in groups of three to the body; intended to be filled with explosive liquid and wick, used as a hand grenade. 516 grams, 11.9 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 Viking Age Iron Broken-Backed Knife 'Seax' Blade
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With scooped forward edge, straight single edge and arched triangular back; transverse mounting tang. 208 grams, 37.5 cm
From a North American collection formed in the 1970s-1990s. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.
This knife seems to be of type IV, like the one found in the Thames at Wandsworth. Based on its similarities with a specimen from Canterbury, it could be dated to the 8th century A.D. Underwood classifies these kind of knives under the typology C (angled back-curved cutting edge) dating them from the mid 6th to early 8th century A.D. -
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18th-3rd century B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £130
Comprising triangular types with thick midrib, heater-shaped, leaf-shaped, barbed-and-tanged, paddle-shaped with a flat, comparatively wide mid-rib, and other types. 190 grams, 24-76 mm
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