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LOT 1821
Western Asiatic Bronze Arrowhead Collection
1000-700 B.C.
2 3/4 - 6 1/2 in. (240 grams total, 7.1-16.5 cm).
Comprising fifteen tanged arrowheads, four with elongated triangular blades and raised midrib, two of squared type with flat tang, three with barbed shoulders and short cylindrical stem with handle for the shaft; two with squared shoulders and rectangular stem with handle for the shaft, one with leafed elongated blade, one with wide triangular head and long handle for the shaft, and other two long and spiked with raised midrib. [15]
ProvenanceLondon, UK, collection, 1990s.
LiteratureFor some of the similar types cf. Mahboubian, H., Art of the Ancient Iran, London, 1997, no.390; Khorasani, M.M., Arms and Armour from Iran. The Bronze Age to the End of the Qajar Period, Tübingen, 2006, figs. 458-461, 463-467, for some of these types.
FootnotesSome of the arrowheads belong to type V of the Khorasani classification: subtype D (triangular arrowheads with rounded or angular midrib) and subtype C, arrowheads with elongated, triangular shape with barbed shoulders and convex sides, and a raised midrib with a sharp central line.
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AUCTIONS:
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LOT 1821
Western Asiatic Bronze Arrowhead Collection
Sold for (Inc. bp): £286
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Byzantine 'Greek Fire' Ceramic Fire Bomb or Hand Grenade
9th-11th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £91
Ovoid body with impressed dot decoration, domed filler hole; intended to be filled with explosive liquid and a wick, and used as a hand grenade. 360 grams, 12.1 cm
From an important specialist collection, London, UK, 1990s. 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 Spearhead
9th-7th century B.C.Estimate: £120 - 170 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £67
Comprising a leaf-shaped blade with a midrib and a long tapering socket; accompanied by a display stand, repaired. 365 grams total, spearhead: 36.5 cm (38.2 cm including stand)
Ex Abelita family collection, 1980s-2000s.
The spear, belonging to type 3 of the Khorasani classification, was used by chariot fighters to strike each other or the enemy infantry from above. Similar specimens with longer sockets were excavated by Negahban in the Amlash area. According to Moorey, sockets as long, if not longer than the blade, are a characteristic of Iranian spearheads in the late 2nd and early 1st millennium B.C. A similar spearhead from the Tappeh Sialk has been dated to the 9th-7th century B.C. -
Byzantine 'Greek Fire' Ceramic Fire Bomb or Hand Grenade
9th-11th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £130
Piriform in profile with impressed motifs on the shoulder; intended to be filled with explosive liquid and a wick, and used as a hand grenade. 461 grams, 10.5 cm
From an important specialist collection, London, UK, 1990s. 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.
