Details

LOT 1435

Turco-Mongol 'Greek Fire' Ceramic Fire Bomb or Hand Grenade

14TH-15TH CENTURY A.D.

5 1/2 in. (464 grams, 14 cm).

Piriform in profile with domed mouth and stepped neck, raised vertical lugs on the body, linear decoration; intended to be filled with explosive liquid and a wick, and used as a hand grenade.

Provenance

From an important specialist collection, London, UK, 1990s onwards.

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

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.