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LOT 1376
Western Asiatic Bronze Sword Sheath
2ND-1ST MILLENNIUM B.C.
22 in. (355 grams, 56 cm).
Triangular in plan, terminating in an exaggerated curving point; the outer face pierced towards the top and with a raised midrib; the convex interior possibly containing fragmentary remains of a weapon.
ProvenanceFrom a Japanese collection, 1990s.
LiteratureCf. Moorey, P., Catalogue of Ancient Persian Bronzes in the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, 1971, no.60, for a sword contained in a similar sheath.
FootnotesScabbards with a curve at their base are shown on reliefs and seals from Anatolia from the middle of the second millennium to the 9th century B.C.
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LOT 1376
Western Asiatic Bronze Sword Sheath
Estimate £300 - 400€350 - 460 (for guidance only)$410 - 540 (for guidance only)
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Luristan Spear Tip Group
13th-6th century B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £156
Comprising four tips with triangular blades; each with a raised midrib and a long tang. 143 grams total, 13.5-18.2 cm
Acquired 1980-2015. Ex Abelita family collection.
Although some of them are different in shape, these arrowheads are apparently related types of a polythetic group. Two basic deltoid forms are represented: one has a sharp, flat blade, the ends of which extend to form wings or barbs, and a prominent midrib extending into a long tang that often has a stop; the blade shape varies from deltoid to more manifestly triangular. The other form has no barbs, but it has a prominent midrib extending to the tang, and a narrow leaf-shaped blade. -
Khandjar Type Iron Dagger
19th century A.D.Estimate: £150 - 200 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £80
Curved with a thick double edge blade, handle composed of wood and iron, ornately decorated with lozenges, fastened by eight iron flat-headed rivets. 118 grams, 32 cm long
Fine condition.
Private family collection formed in London, mid 1980s to early 1990s.
Among the various Arab dagger groups, the one from North Africa is characterised by rather fine blades made in the Turkish-Persian style. Usually the handles (in wood, ivory and metal) feature a large rounded pommel in the guise of peacock feathers. This type is common in Morocco, Tunisia and all the way to Egypt, and is a type of Khandjar usually called Koummiya or Goummiya (a term later adopted in Spanish as Goumia, to indicate all the short Arab daggers). -
Bronze Age Socketted Spearhead
Circa 19th century B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £39
With foliate blade and tapering socket. 183 grams, 25.6 cm
From a collection acquired on the UK art market from various auction houses and collections mostly before 2000. From an important Cambridgeshire estate; thence by descent.
The bronze spearhead developed considerably during the period of the Assyrian colonies in Anatolia and even during the period Karum III-IV, maintaining consistently its southern shape. Conical points are also known from Bogazkoy's Karum levels. While spearheads from the first half of the 2nd millennium B.C. were hafted by means of a tang, with two slots in the blade providing additional support, most of the Late Bronze Age spearheads were socketted.
