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LOT 0306
Viking Age Iron 'Gotland Type' Axe Head
CIRCA 9TH-13TH CENTURY A.D.
6 1/2 in. (635 grams, 16.5 cm).
With curved blade and trefoil-shaped chin to the lower edge, round socket with triangular flanges to the upper edge and trefoil-shaped flanges to the lower face.
ProvenanceFrom the private collection of a London gentleman, from his grandfather's collection formed before the early 1970s.
LiteratureCf. similar specimen in the Swedish Historical Museum, inventory no.120502_HST, found in a field at Rommunds, Gammelgarn Parish, Gotland; cf. also Hjardar, K. & Vike, V., Vikings at war, Oxford-Philadelphia, 2016, p.161, for a similar example in the typology of decorated axes.
FootnotesThe axe head was made in a particular shape showing elements of plant ornamentation and it may have been used both as a battle axe and working axe. Most men were farmers or labourers on a farm and rarely carried a weapon other than a knife and an axe. Nevertheless, battle, the hunt and the ability to ride were important elements of what constituted the ideal Viking man.
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AUCTIONS:
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Viking Age Iron T-Shaped Axehead
10th-12th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £111
Narrow T-shaped blade with curved edge, large D-shaped socket with lateral triangular flanges and rectangular extension to the rear. 588 grams, 17 cm
From the private collection of a London gentleman, from his grandfather's collection formed before the early 1970s.
Slavic battle-axes also came into use in Scandinavia, especially in the Eastern part of Gotland, Denmark and Sweden. One of the types was a T-shaped axe with a broad blade. There were narrow-bladed types too, described as being very light. Another characteristic of some of the Eastern axes was an extra long hammer or more rarely a secondary blade protruding from the back of axehead. -
Medieval Iron Caltrop Anti-Cavalry Group
13th-15th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £338
A group of ten iron anti-cavalry caltrops, hand-forged with square-section spikes. 599 grams total, 77-96 mm
From the private collection of a London gentleman, from his grandfather's collection formed before the early 1970s.
P. Žákovský has been able to classify medieval caltrops, mainly from the 13th to 15th century A.D., on the basis of their morphology, into four main typologies, each with different variants. Caltrops with single-pointed spikes, whose interpretation, however, is often ambiguous belong to type I. The other three types represent classic four-pointed caltrops, and individual types in this group differ from one another just in their cross-section. -
Western Asiatic Medical Instrument
Circa 13th-7th century B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £124
Comprising an H-section tang with lateral wings, slender leaf-shaped head with spiked point. 28.37 grams, 18.5 cm
Ex London, UK, collection, 1990s.
Some texts related to ancient Mesopotamian wound dressing give detailed instructions for surgery with a scalpel, including post-operative care such as the dressing of operations sites with oilsoaked linen bandages. One scantily described operation is the cutting between the third and fourth ribs, counting from inferior to superior, to relieve pus collection in the pleura or liver.
