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LOT 1393
Viking Period Iron Broad Baltic Axe-Hammer
CIRCA 12TH-13TH CENTURY A.D.
7 1/4 in. (349 grams, 18.5 cm).
Comprising a flat socket with lateral spurs, slender neck developing to a broad blade with curved edge, chin to the lower edge and point to the upper, rear square-section shank with disc hammer-face. [No Reserve]
ProvenancePrivate collection, Arundel, West Sussex, UK, 1975-late 1990s.
LiteratureCf. Sedov, B.B., Finno-Ugri i Balti v Epokhi Srednevekovija, Moscow, 1987, pl.CXXIV, item 21.
FootnotesDuring the mid 13th century, the axes were favourite weapons among the Baltic people. For example, the Curonian army 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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Luristan Bronze Sword with Handle
13th-7th century B.C.Estimate: £300 - 400 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £150
Substantial with leaf-shaped blade, lentoid in section and with rounded tip, rectangular-section tang; blade with nicked and chipped edge. 890 grams, 42 cm
Acquired on the UK art market before 2000. Property of an Essex, UK, gentleman. -
Mesopotamian Bronze Javelin Head
3rd-2nd millennium B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £416
With foliate blade, rhomboidal in section, raised mid-rib, medium length stem widening at its base and forming a small stop, quadrangular section tang with bent terminal. 262 grams, 45 cm
Acquired 1980-2015. Ex Abelita family collection.
The specimen belongs to the category of tripartite spears with long pointed biconvex blade and single bevelled tang. They seem to be a Mesopotamian and Susian (Elamite) variant, and this type also includes decorated blades, like the spear from Tello with the inscription 'King of Kish'. -
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.
