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LOT 0296
Villanovan Bronze Helmet
8TH CENTURY B.C.
12 in. (1.7 kg, 30.5 cm wide).
With rounded bowl and flared rim; three sets of paired piercings for attachment of leather cheek-flaps; cracked.
ProvenanceAcquired early 1990s.
Ex private American collection; thence by descent.
Private European collection since 1998.
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 no.11573-199009.
Cf. Coussin, P., Les Armes Romaines, Paris, 1926; Connolly, P., Greece and Rome at War, London, 1981; Fossati, I., Etruscan Armies, Milano, 1987, p.50, fig.4; Egg, M., 'Italische Helme mit krempe' in Antike Helme, RGZM Monographien 14, Mainz, 1988, pp.222ff., figs.1, 2, 34 and items 58-59, for type; Sekunda, N., and Northwood, S., Early Roman Armies, Oxford, 1995; Connolly, P., Greece and Rome at War, London, 2006; D'Amato, R., Salimbeti, A., The Etruscans, Oxford, 2018, pp.21ff. and pl.B3; D’Amato, R., Negin, A., Decorated Roman Armour, London, 2017, pp.8ff. and fig.2.
FootnotesThe ‘pot’ or ‘bell’ helmet, found in contexts as early as the 8th century coffer grave (ad arca) from the Esquiline (Rome) and other graves (Coussin, 1926, p.88, fig.23; Sekunda, Northwood,1995, p.6, grave 94) was made from a single piece of bronze, while later Italic variants were fashioned from jointed plates (Connolly, 1981, p.102, figs.2-2a; Egg, 1988, p.223, variant Vetulonia). The skull was somewhat spherical, with a flared rim: in some Etruscan and Italic specimens, this was rivetted for strength.
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LOT 0296
Villanovan Bronze Helmet
Estimate £8,000 - 10,000€9,280 - 11,600 (for guidance only)$10,800 - 13,500 (for guidance only)
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Byzantine 'Greek Fire' Ceramic Fire Bomb or Hand Grenade
9th-11th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £182
Piriform body with domed filler-hole, shoulders decorated with row of geometric patterns, intended to be filled with explosive liquid and wick, used as a hand grenade. 484 grams, 11.8 cm
Acquired 1980-2015. Ex Abelita family collection. 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. -
Western Asiatic Bronze Blade Collection
Early 1st millennium B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £117
Including four with tapering blades with broad flattened mid-ribs and rounded shoulders, tapered squared section tangs, two with tang pierced at tip; a similar blade with the tang bent at the tip; one spearhead with foliate blade and raised mid-rib; a short dagger with leaf-shaped blade and long rectangular-section tang. 528 grams total, 17.5-22.6 cm
Ex London collection, formed 1990-2000.
Moorey, Gordon and Khorasani created a classification of bladed weapons, according to which daggers are edged weapons no greater than 36cm in length, dirks (short swords) are between 36cm and 50cm in length, and swords are edged weapons greater than 50cm in length. -
Luristan Bronze Arrowhead Group
Circa 14th-10th century B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £130
Each with a sturdy square-section tang, narrow barbed head with midrib. 98 grams total, 15.5-16 cm
Ex London, UK, collection, 1990s.
These arrowheads seem to belong to the type V, subcategory types A and C according to the classification of Khorasani and Negahban. In the four categories of triangular bronze arrowheads from Luristan, Marlik and Northern Iran individuated by Negahban, subtypes A and C of type V are larger arrow heads with barbed shoulders and triangular heads. These types of arrowheads were commonly used in Anatolia and Mesopotamia from the 2nd millennium B.C., but apparently their employment began earlier in this area, where types like these occur alongside the non-barbed, predominantly ribbed and tanged types.
