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LOT 1419
Western Asiatic Bronze Short Sword with Integral Hilt with Horns
LATE 2ND-1ST MILLENNIUM B.C.
20 3/4 in. (466 grams, 53 cm).
With prominently curved guard, which extends out from the ricasso of the blade and partly frames the hilt, thick flat midrib extending slightly above the ricasso where it held the hilt.
ProvenanceAcquired 1980-2015.
Ex Abelita family collection.
See similar swords in Muscarella, O.W., Bronze and Iron Ancient Near Eastern Artifacts in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 1988, pp.99-100.
FootnotesThe hilt of such swords was made separately, and unfortunately is nearly always missing from the archaeological records. Similar daggers had a northern Iranian background and excavated examples have been recorded from the South Caspian Area from Tomadjan and Ghalekuti.
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LOT 1419
Western Asiatic Bronze Short Sword with Integral Hilt with Horns
Estimate £180 - 240€210 - 280 (for guidance only)$240 - 320 (for guidance only)
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Luristan Bronze Spearhead
Circa 1000 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £26
With short foliate blade, shallow midrib and long socketted shaft with fastening holes. 112 grams, 22.8 cm
Acquired 1980-2015. Ex Abelita family collection. -
Viking Age and Later Axehead Group
Circa 10th-18th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £52
Comprising socketted axeheads of various types; some possibly stamped with maker's marks. 7 kg total, 16-24.5 cm
Acquired 1990s-early 2000s. East Anglian private collection.
An axe similar to those of our group was found in the fortified camp of Péran, in Brittany, among the objects that emerged from a conflagration due to the attack of Alain Barbetorte's Bretons on a Viking camp, in 936 A.D. These axes were certainly work tools, although in case of necessity they could also serve as improvised weapons -
Turco-Mongol 'Greek Fire' Ceramic Fire Bomb or Hand Grenade
14th-15th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £85
Cylindrical in form with tapering foot, three radiating vertical flanges to the body with ribbing between, carinated shoulder with impressed points, domed mouth. 587 grams, 17 cm
From a specialist collection of militaria, London, UK, collected 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.
