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Details
LOT 1361
Turco-Mongol 'Greek Fire' Ceramic Fire Bomb or Hand Grenade
14TH CENTURY A.D.
6 3/4 in. (610 grams, 17.2 cm).
Piriform body with thick ribs to the shoulder and impressed knotwork panels between, domed filler-hole, intended to be filled with explosive liquid and wick, used as a hand grenade. [No Reserve]
Provenance
From the H.N. collection, Milton Keynes, Berkshire, UK, 1990s.
Literature
Cf. Arendt, W. I., Granaten des 13-14. Jahrhunderts, die an der Wolga gefunden sind, Zeitschrift fur Historische Waffen-und Kostumkunde, 11 (1926-8), p.42; cf. Arendt, W., Die Spharisch-konischen Gefäße aus Gebranntem Ton, ibid; cf. Ayalon, D., Gunpowder and Firearms in the Mamluk Kingdom, London, 1956, p.16.
Footnotes
The shape corresponds with a fire grenade in the Kars Museum, no.14.09.2009. 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.
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LOT 1361
Turco-Mongol 'Greek Fire' Ceramic Fire Bomb or Hand Grenade
Sold for (Inc. bp): £130
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