Loading, please wait...
LOT 0308
Roman 'Pompey the Great' Lead Slingshot
1ST CENTURY B.C.
1 1/2 in. (47 grams, 39 mm).
Biconical lead slingshot (glans) with inscription in Latin letters 'CN' (Cneius) 'MAG' (Magnus) on one side, and 'IMP' for 'IMPERATOR' (victorious general) to the other side, i.e Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus Imperator (Pompey the Great the victorious general). [No Reserve]
ProvenanceEx M.Cummings, UK, 1990s.
LiteratureCf. 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 a similar glandes from Zaragoza Museum, the one with the name of Pompey inscribed coming from Munda battlefield.
FootnotesThe shot (Völling type 1C) is marked with the abbreviated name of Gnaeus Pompey; it was used in quantity at the Battle of Monda (or Munda) against Julius Caesar, 17th March 45 BC. The projectiles were made of different materials: lead (glandes) or in pottery or stone (lapides missiles). Sometimes they were signed with the name of the general, like our specimen.
CONDITIONTimeLine 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.
-
.jpg)
Medieval Iron Socketted Javelin
Circa 15th-16th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £85
With square-section spike and tapering socket. 249 grams, 32 cm
Ex California, USA, collection formed since the late 1960s. European art market before the late 1990s. -
Luristan Bronze Horse Bit with Horses
11th-8th century B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £4,160
The cheekpieces formed as stylised horses with small ears, elongated heads and long tails, a circular opening to the body for the bar to pass through, two loops to the body and two spurs to the reverse. 654 grams, 21 cm wide
Ex Paris collection. French gallery, Paris, 1990-2000s. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate no.11975-210127
In Luristan, horses were usually buried with a bronze horse-bit in their mouths, as shown by finds from Sarkishti, where the horses’ teeth were stained green. -
Western Asiatic Bronze Arrowhead Group
14th-10th century B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £117
Comprising ten triangular arrowheads with tangs. 203 grams total, 8.1-15 cm
Acquired 1980-2015. Ex Abelita family collection.
Some of these arrowheads seem to belong to the type V, subcategory types A and C according to the classification of Khorasani and Negahban. In the four categories of triangular bronze arrowheads from Luristan, Marlik and Northern Iran described by Negahban, subtypes A and C of type V are larger arrow heads with barbed shoulders and triangular heads. These types of arrowheads were commonly used in Anatolia and Mesopotamia from the 2nd 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.
