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LOT 1488
Viking Age Iron Socketted Hooked Axehead
CIRCA 9TH-12TH CENTURY A.D.
6 in. (460 grams, 15 cm).
With long, deeply curved blade, short neck, socket with triangular wings above and below; professionally cleaned, conserved, and restored. [No Reserve]
ProvenanceFrom the family collection of a South East London collector; formerly acquired in the late 1950s.
LiteratureCf. Sedov, B.B., Finno-Ugri i Balti v Epokhi Srednevekovija, Moscow, 1987, plate CXXIV, item 1.
FootnotesThese axes are typical of Baltic workmanship. During this age, the axes were the favourite weapons of many Baltic people, including the Curonian army which included lightly armed soldiers who fought with spears, shields, fighting knives and axes. A heavily armed soldier could also carry a sword, a helmet, a shield, and a wide-bladed axe.
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AUCTIONS:
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Elaborate Canaanite Bronze 'Anchor' Axehead
Early 2nd millennium B.C.Estimate: £800 - 1,000 (‡+bp*)
Opening Bid: £400
Comprising a deep crescentic blade with two spurs at each end intended to brace against the shaft, a narrow neck, and flared socket with vertical spurs to the reverse and a knop finial. 305 grams, 11.2 cm wide
Acquired in the mid 1980s-1990s. Private collection, Switzerland, thence by descent. Private collection, since the late 1990s. -
Byzantine 'Greek Fire' Ceramic Fire Bomb or Hand Grenade
9th-11th century A.D.Estimate: £100 - 140 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £50
Ovoid body with impressed ring to the shoulder, domed filler-hole; intended to be filled with explosive liquid and a wick, and used as a hand grenade. 251 grams, 84 mm
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'.
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. -
Caucasian Bronze Hilted Iron Sword
Iron Age, 8th-6th century B.C.Estimate: £4,000 - 6,000 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £1,600
A broad sword with tapering blade and rounded shoulders, bronze hilt with crescentic pommel and apotropaic eye motifs to both sides; accompanied by bronze scabbard or baldric elements including a pair of eyelets with suspension loops, four circular appliqués with conical tips and ropework borders, and a scabbard chape with two opposing ibexes; mounted on a custom-made display stand. 2.2 kg total, 78 cm including stand
From the private collection of a London gentleman, from his grandfather's collection formed before the early 1970s. Accompanied by an academic report by Dr Raffaele D'Amato. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate number no.12914-245170.
The sword belongs to the Caucasian culture of the Colchis, and represents a very rare typology. A similar blade was found together with early Scythian arrows during excavations at Karmir-Blur. A similar combination found at Kulanurkhva’s excavations suggests that the appearance of such blades in Abkhazia is linked to the Scythian campaigns in Near Eastern Asia.
