Antique Arms & Militaria

A French Four Pounder Cannon Ball Fired at Waterloo Recovered at La Haye Sainte, the Battle of Waterloo. Approx 3 inches Diameter

The surface is very russetted by is nicely preserved overall, and it is a fabulous, historical, conversation piece.

Recovered alongside some relic items of combat, soldiers thimbles plus another cannon balls etc. discovered around La Haye Sainte (named either after Jesus Christ's crown of thorns or a bramble hedge round a field nearby).

It is a walled farmhouse compound at the foot of an escarpment on the Charleroi-Brussels road in Belgium. It has changed very little since it played a crucial part in the Battle of Waterloo on 18 June 1815.

La Haye Sainte was defended by about 400 King's German Legion troops during the Battle of Waterloo. They were hopelessly outnumbered by attacking French troops but held out until the late afternoon when they retired because their ammunition had run out. If Napoleon Bonaparte's army had captured La Haye Sainte earlier in the day, almost certainly he would have broken through the allied centre and defeated the Duke of Wellington's army.

The capture of La Haye Sainte in the early evening then gave the French the advantage of a defensible position from which to launch a potentially decisive attack on the Allied centre. However, Napoleon was too late—by this time, Blücher and the Prussian army had arrived on the battlefield and the outnumbered French army was defeated.

Strategic importance

A view of the battlefield from the Lion's mound. On the top right are the buildings of La Haye Sainte. This view looks east, with Allied forces behind the road to the left (north) and French forces out of shot to the right(south)
The road leads from La Belle Alliance, where Napoleon had his headquarters on the morning of the battle, through where the centre of the French front line was located, to a crossroads on the ridge which is at the top of the escarpment and then on to Brussels. The Duke of Wellington placed the majority of his forces on either side of the Brussels road behind the ridge on the Brussels side. This kept most of his forces out of sight of the French artillery.

During the night from the 17th to the 18th, the main door to the courtyard of the farm was used as firewood by the occupying troops. Therefore, when the King's German Legion (KGL) was stationed in the farm at the morning of the battle they had to hastily fortify La Haye Sainte.

The troops were the 2nd Light Battalion KGL commanded by Major Georg Baring, and part of the 1st Light Battalion KGL. During the battle, they were supported by the 1/2 Nassau Regiment and the light company of the 5th Line Battalion KGL. The majority of these troops were armed with the Baker rifle with grooved barrels, as opposed to the normal Brown Bess musket of the British Army. The French troops also used muskets which were quicker to load than the Baker rifle but the latter was more accurate and had about twice the range of a musket.

Both Napoleon and Wellington made crucial mistakes about La Haye Sainte as it was fought over and around during most of the day. Napoleon failed to allocate enough forces to take the farm earlier in the day while Wellington only realised the strategic value of the position when it was almost too late.

By 1812 the French had cannon operating on several organizational levels. Most infantry regiments had their own guns, each division would likely have a battery or two of artillery, and on top of that there would be several batteries in the reserve artillery of each Corps. It can get a bit confusing, so I decided to organize what I have and also plan ahead to make sure that I don't make too many mistakes when buying these impressive pieces.
Regimental Guns
Napoleon experimented with regimental guns already in 1809. To bolster both the impact and morale of his regiments he sprinkled out light cannon to give them some extra local firepower. This unfortunately had tactical disadvantages, since the guns could hinder the troops both when moving on the battlefield and during marches.

These were mostly smaller guns, by now completely outmatched in regular batteries. The regular infantry in 1812 were, according to research, largely equipped with 3-pounder cannon captured from Austria's impressive record of military misfortune. As far as I know these cannon came with or without a strange kind of fork-like attachment at the front.

The 9lb British “Blomfield” cannon used at the Battle of Waterloo. The heaviest type of artillery used by the British Army at Waterloo, {apart from the howitzers} it fired a solid cannonball weighing around nine pounds (about four kilos). Cannons were a vital part of warfare at the time of Waterloo, with the ability to rip through massed ranks of troops and inflict terrible casualties.

In 1780 Captain Thomas Blomfield RA was appointed Inspector of Artillery and Superintendent of the Royal Brass Foundry. Three years later he was given responsibility for re-organising the Ordnance Department. At the same time he was experimenting with new forms of ordnance. The resultant Blomfield guns had thicker breeches, thinner chases and a cascabel ring to control recoil, making them stronger without increasing their weight.

The Blomfield 9-pounder cannon, fired a round shot ball around 4 inches in diameter, was introduced to the Royal Artillery (RA) in 1805 as a response to the heavier French calibre guns. At Waterloo Wellington had 157 pieces but only 60 were 9-pdrs, in 12 batteries. The remaining 13 batteries had 6-pdrs and howitzers. Interestingly, the Dutch-Belgian and Brunswick Artillery, who fought alongside the British at Waterloo, used French cannons (known as An. XI Ordnance). Wellington employed his Royal Horse Artillery very effectively during the battle as a mobile reserve to plug holes in his line. For example, with Hougoumont under attack, Major Bull’s troop was brought forward in support from its original position towards the rear of the allied position.

The allied artillery faced 246 pieces in 34 French batteries. As was his usual tactic, Napoleon started the battle with a heavy artillery bombardment on the Allied line to soften up the enemy.

Cannons on both sides used round-shot of six nine or twelve pounds but the French also had four pounders, as is this ball. They were all lethal against columns of infantry, knocking down several men at once for as long as the ball continued to travel. Case shot or canister (tin coated iron cans) packed with smaller iron balls was devastating at close range. Only the British used spherical case (Shrapnel) where a shell was filled with small iron balls. A specially cut wooden fuse detonated a bursting charge.

Every single item from The Lanes Armoury is accompanied by our unique Certificate of Authenticity. Part of our continued dedication to maintain the standards forged by us over the past 100 years of our family’s trading  read more

Code: 26165

A Rare and Original, American, Antique Civil War Remington Large Calibre Army Revolver, With an Original Wild West Rimfire Cartridge Conversion Upgrade. A Superb 5 Shot Revolver. One of The Most Interesting & Historical Guns of The Civil War & Frontier

In overall very nice condition indeed. The Remington Model 1858 was a cap & ball (also called "percussion") 44-calibre revolver, {upgraded to the larger .46-cal. rim fire in 1868} and used during the American Civil War from its close, then this rare pistol was converted to a larger cartridge, a seperate serial number added to the barrel underside, and re-finished addressed etc. and sold for use in the Wild West era onwards.
It was first used primarily as cap and ball by Union soldiers, and widely favoured over the standard issue Colt Army Model 1860 by those who could afford it, due primarily to its durability and ability to quickly reload. Of course if a gun such as this was captured in a Confederate victory it would be eagerly used by its new southern states owner as a highly prized trophy of war. It also saw considerable use in the American West, both in its original cap & ball configuration and as a metallic cartridge conversion.

At the end of our Civil War, the need to rearm with cartridge arms was an obvious imperative and signaled the end of the muzzleloading era worldwide. America was exhausted and money was tight in both the treasury and people’s pockets, yet the superiority of the copper-cased rimfire round to the paper cartridge couldn’t be ignored even though the obvious limitations of the rimfire system were soon evident. U.S. Civil War General Hiram Berdan’s bolt-action rifle, paper-patched bullet in a drawn brass case ignited by his Berdan primer electrified the world, but our Congress was in no mood to pay royalties on a new rifle and cartridge however superior—even to one of our war heroes—and our military became saddled with an inefficient inside-primed, copper-cased round developed at our arsenal for use in cartridge muskets initially converted from the vast stocks of muzzleloaders on hand.

Handguns were a different matter entirely. Smith & Wesson had locked up the bored-through cylinder patent necessary for the use of a cartridge, but only made .22s and .32s—hardly what a soldier or Indian fighter wanted to war with. The Army having to fight the war with a percussion handgun after seeing how well the Spencer and Henry cartridge rifles fared had no choice for a cartridge handgun with S&W working to renew the patent set to expire in 1869. The market was equally ready for a suitable belt-sized cartridge revolver, and the 1858 Remington was a nearly perfect platform.

While working on their own big bore, Smith & Wesson contracted with Remington to convert 4,575 1858 Army revolvers for a new .46 Short Rimfire cartridge. Of these, 4,141 were sold to wholesaler B. Kittredge & Co. in Cincinnati, Ohio for $3.36 each. That clearly puts these “modern” revolvers in the path of the folks heading West after the war. Due to the hand engraved cylinder patent date of 1855 we believe this is one of those very few intriguing revolvers. Matching six figure serial numbers on the barrel and grip frame, with matching cartridge conversion company serial numbers 2777 also on the barrel and grip frame. Several inspector's marks throughout.

There is a reason the .44 Henry wasn’t shoehorned into the first cartridge revolvers. The rimfire cartridge was nominally a .45. The “.44” in the percussion caliber is for the bore diameter, and the groove diameter was a .45. The conversion process was a lot cheaper without having to install a new barrel, and plenty of the old barrels and revolvers were on hand. Remington already chambered a .46 Long rimfire in Rolling Block carbines for use in the Civil War, and it easily transitioned into a rimfire handgun round with a shortened case and lighter heeled bullet. All these early cartridges, closely duplicated the ballistics of the combustible paper cartridges used in the percussion revolvers.

These first Remington Army conversions have been given the nickname “thin plate conversions” by collectors and were made in three versions. None had loading gates, and that likely made life interesting for those who held the revolver muzzle up while cocking! Perhaps the outside-lubricated bullets were sticky enough to keep the rounds from rocketing out. The original large rimfire was an easy transition to the 1858

A prized possession of the Remington Arms Company is a similar, original, New Model Army with ivory grips once carried by William F. "Buffalo Bill" Cody {see photo in our gallery}. The historic revolver is on display with Cody's simple handwritten note, "It never failed me". Cody carried the revolver in original percussion form well into the cartridge era, but didn't converted it to cartridge use. The Remington “Army” .44 percussion revolver was the primary competition to the Colt M1860 .44 percussion revolver during the American Civil War era. Although Sam Colt was the better salesman and marketer, Remington eventually beat Colt out of their military contracts by delivering a comparable (some felt superior) product for less money. In 1864, after the US government had finally beat Colt’s price down to $14.00 per revolver, they had been paying $20.00 or more per gun in the early days of the war, Remington agreed to furnish their “Army” revolver for only $12.00 per gun. That ended the reign of the Colt Army as the first choice for the Ordnance Department procurement officers.


In the field, even though the Colt revolver had the name and the mystique, many cavalry troopers preferred the much sturdier solid frame design of the Remington revolver. According to the research published in Remington Army & Navy Revolvers 1861-1868 by Donald L. Ware, Remington revolvers through serial 149,000 were accepted prior to the end of the Civil War. No license required to own or collect.

The New Model Army pattern
long 8 inch sighted octagonal barrel, stamped with the manufacturer's details and stamped with the serial no. 12XXXX to the underside, usual plain cylinder, usual plain frame, brass trigger guard, good two-piece varnished wooden grips.

Frank and Jesse James both owned and used Remington cartridge revolvers, at least two of which still exist: Frank’s No. 5116 and Jesse’s No. 559. An outlaw known as “Redtop” Callihan was wearing a large calibre cartridge Remington when he was gunned down in Bodie, Calif., in 1892 after allegedly killing six men with it. Businessman R.H. Bain went to Alaska with his Remington and reportedly shot two claim jumpers with it; its original belt, with holster, is stamped “KENNEDY HARDWARE, ANCHORAGE ALAS.”

This is an original antique, historical, collectable with no licence required to own or collect.

One photo in the gallery of Lee Van Cleef in ‘the Good the Bad and the Ugly’ with the Remington New Model Army.

Another photo of Clark Gable using his Remington New Model Army.

For ref;

The Cartridge Era Begins with the 1858 Remington Conversion.
Historical Arms, Old West  read more

Code: 25733

A Good 1821 Pattern Light Cavalry Sabre For Dragoons Hussars and Lancer's

Overall in bright and clean order, in very nice condition. With good steel combat, later scabbard, with a superb snug fit, and a mid section dent.

Victorian-era British cavalry, spanning 1837–1901, comprised distinct roles for hussars and dragoons, though these differences became increasingly ceremonial over time. Hussars acted as light cavalry for reconnaissance, wearing flashy busbies and uniforms, while Dragoons (and Dragoon Guards) were heavier, riding larger horses for shock charges, wearing helmets. By the late 19th century, both functions heavily merged.
Hussars (Light Cavalry)
Light cavalry, designed for reconnaissance, speed, and pursuing a broken enemy.
Uniforms: Wore iconic, elaborate blue jackets with yellow/white braiding (braided pelisse over the shoulder), tight trousers, and the tall fur cap known as a "busby," usually with a white-over-red plume.
Equipment: Armed with curved swords (sabres) for cutting, and sometimes carbines. Due to tight trousers, they carried a "sabretache," a decorative leather pouch hanging from the belt used for carrying messages.
The regiments included the 3rd, 4th, 7th, 8th, 10th, 11th, and 15th Hussars, many of which were converted from light dragoon regiments.  read more

Code: 26162

English Civil War Heavy Siege Gun, a 'Whole' Cannon of 7 inches. Ball 50lbs x 7 Inches. Recovered from the Siege of Chester Castle Site

50-pounder cannon was at the extreme heavy end of artillery used in this period, likely restricted to siege work rather than field battles due to transport limitations.

Charles I of England (r. 1625-1649) considered himself an absolute monarch with absolute power and a divine right to rule, but his unwillingness to compromise with Parliament, particularly over money, led to a civil war from 1642 to 1651. Fought between the 'Roundheads' (Parliamentarians) and 'Cavaliers' (Royalists) in over 600 battles and sieges, the war was a bloody and protracted conflict.

Both armies had artillery units, but the number of cannons at any given battle or siege varied depending on availability, location, and the losses or captures of artillery in previous engagements. A general commanded an artillery train while groups of cannons – a battery – came under the command of a senior officer. Each individual gun team was led by the gunner who organised his various assistants. The Parliamentarian New Model Army began with 56 cannons, but the force expanded over time, especially with additions captured from the enemy. The Royalists, however, struggled to keep pace as the necessary finances became more difficult to raise as the war went in Parliament's favour.

The gun crew consisted of at least the following: a gunner who aimed the piece, the gunner's mate who loaded it, and an assistant. A specialist artillery engineer would have first calculated the correct range and trajectory using various instruments like scales, quadrants, and rulers to measure the angle of elevation of the barrel. His instruments would provide figures that could be compared to prepared charts, but really nothing replaced practical experience with a specific cannon.

For each new shot (at least for larger cannons), the crew had to first cool down the barrel using a blanket of thin leather or sheepskin soaked in water. This was to ensure the new charge of powder did not prematurely explode. Another precaution between shots was to clear the barrel and touchhole of any blockages, residue spent powder or burning embers. When ready, the required measure of gunpowder was pushed down the barrel, blocked in place with wadding such as hay or oakum, and the cannonball gently pushed in. Another quantity of wadding was then added. A rod was next used to ram everything tightly to the bottom of the barrel. If the charge was not firmly packed then the explosive energy was lost, which reduced the range of the shot. A poorly packed charge could even blow up the cannon itself. The gunpowder was then lit through the touchhole in the top of the cannon using a slow match attached to the end of a long pole (linstock) for safety. The match lit fine-grained priming powder, which in turn set off the main powder charge.

John Byron, 1st Baron Byron (1599–1652) was a staunch Royalist soldier and politician during the English Civil War, known for his cavalry leadership and unwavering loyalty to Charles I. Created a baron in 1643, he commanded forces in Cheshire and Lancashire, defended Chester, and later served in the royal court in exile, dying in Paris.

At the outset of the English Civil War, Chester was held by forces loyal to King Charles. The city was especially important to the Royalists as its location on the River Dee and proximity to the Irish Sea made it an important gateway to both Ireland and North Wales. The central city was surrounded partially by the river and protected by strong city walls dating back to the times of the Romans. When the civil war broke out, the Royalists further strengthened the city walls and added a ring of earthwork defences extending out and around portions of the city to the north and east

The siege of Chester occurred over a 16-month period between September 1644 and February 1646 during the First English Civil War. In the engagement, Sir William Brereton and the Parliamentarians were ultimately successful in taking possession of the city and Royalist garrison commanded by Lord Byron.

Although the siege spanned nearly one and a half years, the degree to which the city was confined varied in intensity. Throughout the 16-month time period, conflicts continued to occur between the Royalists and the Parliamentarians in Cheshire and during the spring and summer of 1645, the Royalists were successful in causing the Parliamentarians to temporarily lift the siege. Ultimately, however, the Parliamentarians enforced a total blockade and captured the city.



Ref; Mark Cartwright

https://www.worldhistory.org/article/1931/artillery-in-the-english-civil-wars/  read more

Code: 26159

A Superb, Original, Antique Maasai Lion Hunter's Enkuma 'Lion Spear' . From the Maasai Mara of The Great Rift Valley of Kenya. Of the Best, 'Original Maasai Cultural Artifact' Examples We Have Seen in Over 40 years

Around 200 years old. Beautifully hand polished. From a pair we acquired from a late retired Maasai Mara game wardens collection, that he collected between WW1 and WW2. Presented to him, as a revered tribal artifact {over 100 years old then} by a tribal senior elder in the 1920's.

A fabulous piece of Maasai tribal hand crafted 'worked steel'

Heavy African spear, used by the Masai of Kenya.
Termed a lion spear called an enkuma, these were traditionally used by young men in a rites of passage to kill a lion to attain adulthood. The long iron spearhead is very robust to avoid being bent, it would fit upon a small central wooden handle section, beneath which would be a very long steel spike.

There was nothing gratuitous about killings such as these. Maasai lion hunts were a battle to the death between two worthy adversaries. This was not trophy hunting, which, too often, involves sports hunters waiting in a safely concealed position for a lion to come to a bait, then shooting it with a high-powered weapon. Killing a lion with a spear, in hand-to-hand combat, requires great skill, strength, and immense courage. Maasai lion hunts were also relatively rare, and these rite-of-passage killings had little impact upon overall lion numbers.

These spears were carried by the tribe’s young men when they are charged with protecting the cattle that the Masai depended upon from the predation of lions. Reputedly, the technique was to firmly ground the tail spike of the spear and direct the spearpoint at a lion who was then enticed to charge. If all went well, the leaping beast would be impaled on the spear. Every Maasai youth needed to kill a lion in this way to be recognised as a warrior, but the smallest mistake on the young man’s part would likely not end well.

The Maasai are nomadic pastoralists of East Africa who range along the Great Rift Valley of Kenya and Tanzania, the Samburu of Kenya, and the semi-pastoral Arusha and Baraguyu (or Kwafi) of Tanzania. Maasai subsist almost entirely on the meat, blood, and milk of their herds. Their kraal, consisting of a large circular thornbush fence around a ring of mud-dung houses, holds four to eight families and their herds.

The Maasai maintain a number of patriarchal clans grouped into two classes, or “moieties”. Within the classes members are integrated in a system of age-sets that sees groups of the same age initiated into adult life together. The age-class thus formed is a permanent social grouping that lasts the lifetime of its members. They move up through a hierarchy of grades, each lasting approximately 15 years, including those of junior warriors, senior warriors, and junior elders, until they become senior elders authorized to make decisions for the tribe. Between the ages of about 14 and 30, young men are traditionally known as “morans”. During this period they live in isolation in the bush, learning tribal customs and developing the strength, courage, and endurance for which Maasai warriors are noted throughout the world.

Important!! Not to be confused with the common tourist examples that are frequently seen and described mistakenly as lion spears  read more

Code: 26160

Welcome to The Lanes Armoury, Britain's Truly Magical Place, Where Thousands of Original & Breathtaking Wonders Are For Sale And New Fantastic Original Treasures Added, Every, Single, Day.

Our beautiful pieces from history are not always just for looking at, some {such as the B3 Pilots Jacket} can still be enjoyed, and even worn, for every one to see.

This week we have some superb, British, Victorian swords from the Crimean War, for a new young officer serving in The Zulu War, and one beauty, regimentally marked to the 1st Battalion The Welsh Regiment, for an officer that served in combat Mahdist War (1888): The 1st Battalion was dispatched to Egypt in 1886, playing a key role in the Mahdist War at the Battle of Gemaizah (Suakin) in December 1888, where they were highly praised for their efficiency by their commander, Col.Kitchener.

Colonel Herbert Kitchener, {later to become known as the great Field Marshal Lord Kitchener} who wrote in his dispatches:

‘The half-Battalion of The Welsh Regiment are seasoned soldiers and whatever I asked of them to do they did well. They’re marksmen at Gemaizah Fort and the remainder of the half-Battalion on the left fired section volleys driving the Dervishes from their right position and inflicting severe punishment upon them when in the open. Significantly the Battalion did not lose a man”

Later, the 1st Battalion was dispatched to South Africa in November 1899 for the Second Boer War: it was engaged in Battle of Paardeberg in February 1900, where they suffered heavy losses, and again at the Battle of Driefontein in March 1900

Also, cannon balls from the English Civil War seige. One ball was recovered {in living memory} almost five feet beneath the surface mud. And an incredibly very rare and historical, WW2 British SOE agent’s ‘assassins’ issued sleeve dagger, used in the invasion of Sicily. NOW SOLD

Key aspects of SOE Special Operations Executive} involvement and special forces operations in Sicily include:
Targeting Fascist Italy: Between 1940 and 1943, the SOE worked to encourage sabotage and resistance against Mussolini’s regime. By the time of the Sicily invasion, this research and clandestine groundwork aimed to undermine Italian morale and operations.
Special Raiding Squadron (SRS): The Special Raiding Squadron, commanded by Paddy Mayne and often linked to the SAS and SOE’s broader special forces mission, spearheaded aspects of the invasion. These hand-picked raiders were tasked with lightning raids and close-quarter combat.
The SRS and special forces conducted raids to disrupt German and Italian defensive lines during the 1943 campaign, which lasted from 9 July to 17 August.
SOE's role was part of a larger, broader strategy to cripple Italian resistance and support the massive Allied conventional forces (160,000+ men) that landed in Sicily. While Operation Mincemeat was a separate intelligence operation, it was crucial in tricking the Axis into strengthening Greece instead of Sicily, easing the landing of Allied special forces and regular troops.

The SOE’s efforts in Italy were considered high-risk, as agents operated in a hostile enemy country rather than occupied territory.

Also see our latest incredible 'Royal' daggers from the 17th century Pattal-hatara (Four Workshops) of the King of Sri Lanka. Occasionally, as we are Great Britain’s leading gallery of our kind, we have had had such knives, over the past 30 years, before, but nothing as fine as these museum grade examples, from the small collection we were thrilled to have acquired.

We have just also just added to the web store; a German colonels sword surrendered at the formal surrender of the German armed forces in May 1945 to Field Marshal Lord Montgomery, and a beautiful and magnificent samurai swords from the 1600's Tokugawa Shogunate period, one of the most fabulous samurai swords you might ever see. Plus, an Ancient Greek short sword or long dagger From The Greco-Persian Wars era, From the time of the Spartans at Thermopylae, to Alexander the Great's conquest of Persia & Egypt

We Are Not Just A Webstore, We Are Always Welcoming Thousands Personal Visitors To View or Buy our Museum Pieces in Our Gallery In Brighton, Every Day* {but Sunday}

Thousands of original, historic, ancient, antique and vintage collectables. For example; from Ancient Rome, China and Greece, to Medieval Japan, and Viking Europe. Covering British, European, and in fact, all worldwide eras of historical events from the past 4000 years, with antiquities, weaponry, armour, object d’art, militaria and fabulous books, from the Stone Age, the Bronze Age and the iron age, and right up to WW2.

Where else in the world could you find, under one roof, original artifacts, such as,; a mace and archer’s ring recovered from the site of Battle of Crecy, a sword of a British Admiral or notorious pirate fleet captain of the Golden Age of piracy of 17th century England, a battle mace, possibly once used by of one the personal guards in the service of the most famous Pharoah, Rameses the Great of Egypt, or, a museum quality 500 year old sword of a samurai clan Daimyo lord, and a pair of gold and enamel Art Deco 1920’s Magic Circle medals awarded to a friend of Harry Houdini. And all of the above, with many, many other Museum pieces, have been just been offered upon the site within the past couple of weeks.

Personalised and unique ‘Certificates of Authenticity’ can be supplied for every, single, purchase.

Our family have been personally serving the public in Brighton for several generations, in fact, for over 105 years.

* Opening hours Monday to Saturday 11.00am till 4.00pm, closed Sundays and Bank Holidays.


See in the gallery Will Young wearing one of our fabulous Victorian tunics, plus, James Marshall ‘Jimi’ Hendrix

And Tom pops in again to pick up a few trinkets the other day, and Liz and Richard pop down to visit us in October 1970  read more

Code: 24055

A Fine Antique Indo-Persian 'Mace of Rostam' the Bull's Head Mace

A Persian all iron 'Mace of Rostam' the mighty Paladin of Persia. The mace's head is a full bull's head [after Rostam's Mace] with applied horns and ears, iron haft with traces of silver damascened decoration to all three sides of the bull's head. Good overall condition for age. See Allan and Gilmour fig.26 for a closely related example, and p.189 and 315 for a discussion of these maces. Rostam, sometimes spelled Rustam, was the son of Zal and Rudaba, and the most celebrated legendary hero in Shahnameh and Persian mythology. In Shahnameh, Rostam and his predecessors are Marzbans of Sistan (present-day Iran and Afghanistan). Rostam is best known for his tragic fight with Esfandiar; the other legendary Persian hero, for his expedition to Mazandaran (not to be confused with the modern Mazandaran province); and for tragically fighting and killing his son, Sohrab, without knowing who his opponent was. Rostam was eventually killed by Shaghad, his half-brother.

Rostam was always represented as the mightiest of Iranian paladins (holy warriors), and the atmosphere of the episodes in which he features is strongly reminiscent of the Parthian period. He was immortalized by the 10th-century Persian poet Ferdowsi in the Shahnameh, or Epic of Kings, which contains pre-Islamic Iranian folklore and history.

He rode the legendary stallion Rakhsh and wore a special suit named Babr-e Bayan in battles. While out hunting Rostam awoke from his sleep to find Rakhsh had gone missing. He was distraught at losing his beloved horse and he tracked him as far as the city of Samangan. Here he greeted the King and asked for his help to find Rakhsh.

While in Samangan, Rostam met the king's lovely daughter Tahmina. The Shahname describes her as elegant as a cypress tree. One night she came to his room:

' My name is Tahmineh; longing has torn

My wretched life in two, though I was born

The daughter of the king of Samangan,

And am descended from a warrior clan.

But like a legend I have heard the story

Of your heroic battles and your glory,

Of how you have no fear, and face alone

dragons and demons and dark unknown

Of how you sneak into Turan at night

And prowl the borders to provoke a fight,

Of how, when warriors see your mace, they quail

And feel their lionhearts within them fail.

I bit my lip to hear such talk, and knew

I longed to see you, to catch sight of you,

To glimpse your martial chest and mighty face-

And now God brings you to this lowly place.

If you desire me, I am yours, and none

Shall see or hear of me from this day on.'

But their time together was brief, because once Rakhsh was found, Rostam departed for his homeland. Nine months later Tahmina gave birth to a son Sohrab, who grew up to be a warrior like his father Rostam. Scene from the Shahnama: Garsivaz prostrating himself before Siyavush in the presence of Rustam. 14th century, 54cms  read more

Code: 22529

An Original Ancient Briton, Pre-History, Bronze Age Axe Head, Loop and Socket Form, Formerly From the Sir Alfred McAlpine Collection. 3500 to 4,000 Years Old

A bronze age axe head with square, collared socket and rectangular cheeks with flared, D-section cutting edge, small loop to attach the axe head with sinew cord binding to an axe haft.
Likely recovered from a Bronze age barrow many decades past, formerly in the Sir Alfred McAlpine collection.

A Barrow is an ancient mound where treasure and artifacts were buried with warriors as offerings. There are many ancient Iron Age and Bronze age Barrows covering Britain's ancient lands, some are simple mounds other are long or shaped. However, artifacts and treasure from most of these sights are now long since gone, or, possibly, some remain but are too deep to disturb the precious site, so wonderful finds such as this are a rare joy to see and even rarer to own.

We show another similar, earlier bronze age axe head axe found with Otzi the Ice Man, and a recreation of him in the museum holding his similar axe. We show a photo of his original axe.
The Iceman was discovered in the Otztal Alps in the fall of 1991, the location giving him his now famous name: Otzi. His preserved body and equipment have given us a wealth of information about the time in which he lived.

He died and was buried within glacial ice 5,300 years ago, alone and in pain, yet the remains of his body and equipment are teaching us more than any previous discovery about that time in history when our ancestors were moving out of the stone age and into the age of metal.

He was prepared for his trek through the Tyrolean Alps as well as any modern climber, knowing the dangers of sudden snowstorms that can occur in the spring of the year. He did die, but it was not the weather or the mountains that killed him. It was an arrow shot into his left shoulder that shattered his scapula and tore through blood vessels and nerves. Although he escaped his attacker, the combination of blood loss and the immobility of his left arm had doomed his chances of surviving.

His pain must have been great as he kept climbing, finally stopping at an altitude of 10,400 ft. He slipped his quiver over his shoulder and dropped it to the ground. Staggering a few more yards, he removed his pack frame and laid it down against a stone outcropping. Using only his right arm, he carefully removed two birchbark containers from his pack, one he set on top of the rock, the other he kept close to him, a familiar smell momentarily comforting him. He then placed his copper axe and his bow stave with the pack. Clutching his birchbark cylinder, he struggled a few more steps before he stumbled, but even then, twisting to avoid landing on his left side and protecting the treasure in the container. He painfully pulled the birch bark close to his face, inhaled the last vestiges of the smoke from the failing ember inside and died.

The axe head weighs just under 200 grams, around 3 1/2". Fine condition.  read more

Code: 24099

A 13th Century Iron Head, Crusader Knight's Battle Mace, 800 Years Old, Mounted Upon A Later Museum's Display Haft

Pineapple shaped lobes on circular head with large mounting hole through which the haft slots. it was fitted to a plain wood haft for a museum display, as its original rotted away centuries ago as usual, in order to show how it looked and was used 800 years ago.
This type of mace head were also used as a Flail Mace, by filling out the hollow iron head with lead and a chain mounted hook placed within it, a chain would then be added to the end of a similar but shorter wooden haft. This subsequent mace head weapon could thus then became a flail, often called a scorpion at the time.

This very fine and rare iron mace head has flattened pyramidal protuberances, and is possibly English. Made for a mounted Knight to use as an armour and helmet crusher in hand to hand mortal combat upon his war horse, or then for use dismounted.

It would have been used for several hundred years, up to the 15th to 16th century.
Used as a flail it had the sobriquet of a Scorpion in England or France, or sometimes a Battle-Whip. It was also wryly known as a 'Holy Water Sprinkler'.

King John The Ist of Bohemia used exactly such a weapon, as he was blind, and the act of 'Flailing the Mace' meant lack of site was no huge disadvantage in close combat. Although blind he was a valiant and the bravest of the Warrior Kings, who perished at the Battle of Crecy against the English in 1346. On the day he was slain he instructed his Knights both friends and companions to lead him to the very centre of battle, so he may strike at least one blow against his enemies. His Knights tied their horses to his, so the King would not be separated from them in the press, and they rode together into the thick of battle, where King John managed to strike not one but at least four noble blows. The following day of the battle, the horses and the fallen knights were found all about the body of their most noble King, all still tied to his steed. In fact so noble were his actions regarded, it is said his banner of three erect and standing feathers became the symbol of the then Prince of Wales, Edward, the Black Prince, and as such, is still used by the current Prince of Wales today.

During the Middle Ages metal armour such as mail protected against the blows of edged weapons. Solid metal maces and war hammers proved able to inflict damage on well armoured knights, as the force of a blow from a mace is great enough to cause damage without penetrating the armour. Though iron became increasingly common, copper and bronze were also used, especially in iron-deficient areas.
It is popularly believed that maces were employed by the clergy in warfare to avoid shedding blood (sine effusione sanguinis). The evidence for this is sparse and appears to derive almost entirely from the depiction of Bishop Odo of Bayeux wielding a club-like mace at the Battle of Hastings in the Bayeux Tapestry, the idea being that he did so to avoid either shedding blood or bearing the arms of war. One of the Crusades this type of mace may have been used was the Crusade of 1239, which was in territorial terms the most successful crusade since the First. Called by Pope Gregory IX, the Barons' Crusade broadly spanned from 1234-1241 and embodied the highest point of papal endeavour "to make crusading a universal Christian undertaking." Gregory called for a crusade in France, England, and Hungary with different degrees of success. Although the crusaders did not achieve any glorious military victories, they used diplomacy to successfully play the two warring factions of the Muslim Ayyubid dynasty (As-Salih Ismail in Damascus and As-Salih Ayyub in Egypt) against one another for even more concessions than Frederick II gained during the more well-known Sixth Crusade. For a few years, the Barons' Crusade returned the Kingdom of Jerusalem to its largest size since 1187.
This crusade to the Holy Land is sometimes discussed as two separate crusades: that of King Theobald I of Navarre, which began in 1239; and, the separate host of crusaders under the leadership of Richard of Cornwall, which arrived after Theobald departed in 1240. Additionally, the Barons' Crusade is often described in tandem with Baldwin of Courtenay's concurrent trip to Constantinople and capture of Tzurulum with a separate, smaller force of crusaders. This is because Gregory IX briefly attempted to redirect the target his new crusade from liberating the Holy Land from Muslims to protecting the Latin Empire of Constantinople from heretical Christians.

Despite relatively plentiful primary sources, scholarship until recently has been limited, due at least in part to the lack of major military engagements. Although Gregory IX went further than any other pope to create an ideal of Christian unity in the process of organizing the crusade, in practice the crusade's divided leadership did not reveal a unified Christian action or identity in response to taking a cross. Approx. 2.5 inch wide lobed iron head.

Painting in the gallery by Julian Russel Story of the Black Prince at the battle of Crecy. At his feet lies the body of the dead King John of Bohemia painted in 1888.  read more

Code: 21534

Archaic Chinese Warrior's Bronze Sword, Around 2,300 to 2,800 Years Old, From the Zhou Dynasty to the Qin Dynasty, Including the Period of the Great Military Doctrine 'The Art of War' by General Sun-Tzu

Chinese Bronze 'Two Ring' Jian sword used in the era of the Seven Kingdoms period, likely in the Kingdom of Wu, up to the latter part of the Eastern Zhou dynasty (475 – 221 BC).

Formerly from the Dove collection, Anthony Dove one of the worlds leading authorities on ancient Chinese swords, and the analysis of their metallurgical structure. He was also a leading authority on early spoons.

Swords of this type are called “two-ring” swords because of the prominent rings located on the hilt. this is the very type of sword used by the warriors serving under the world renowned General Sun Tzu, in the Kingdom of Wu, who is thought by many to be the finest general, philosopher and military tactician who ever lived. His 2500 year old book on the methods of warfare, tactics and psychology are still taught and highly revered in practically every officer training college throughout the world.
We show a painting in the gallery of a chariot charge by a Zhou dynasty warrior armed with this very form of sword.
The Chinese term for this form of weapon is “Jian” which refers to a double-edged sword. This style of Jian is generally attributed to either the Wu or the Yue state. The sword has straight graduated edges reducing to a pointed tip, which may indicate an earlier period Jian.

The blade is heavy with a midrib and tapered edges
A very impressive original ancient Chinese sword with a long, straight blade with a raised, linear ridge down its centre. It has a very shallow, short guard. The thin handle would have had leather or some other organic material such as leather or hemp cord, wrapped around it to form a grip. At the top is a broad, round pommel The Seven Kingdom or Warring States period in Chinese history was one of instability and conflict between many smaller Kingdom-states. The period officially ended when China was unified under the first Emperor of China, Qin pronounced Chin Shi Huang Di in 221 BC. It is from him that China gained its name.

The Zhou Dynasty (1046-256 BCE) was among the most culturally significant of the early Chinese dynasties and the longest lasting of any in China's history, divided into two periods: Western Zhou (1046-771 BCE) and Eastern Zhou (771-256 BCE). It followed the Shang Dynasty (c. 1600-1046 BCE), and preceded the Qin Dynasty (221-206 BCE, pronounced “chin”) which gave China its name.

In the early years of the Spring and Autumn Period, (770-476 BC) chivalry in battle was still observed and all seven states used the same tactics resulting in a series of stalemates since, whenever one engaged with another in battle, neither could gain an advantage. In time, this repetition of seemingly endless, and completely futile, warfare became simply the way of life for the people of China during the era now referred to as the Warring States Period. The famous work The Art of War by Sun-Tzu (l. c. 500 BCE) was written during this time, recording precepts and tactics one could use to gain advantage over an opponent, win the war, and establish peace.

Sun Tzu was a Chinese general, military strategist, writer, and philosopher who lived in the Eastern Zhou period of ancient China. Sun Tzu is traditionally credited as the author of The Art of War, an influential work of military strategy that has affected both Western and East Asian philosophy and military thinking. His works focus much more on alternatives to battle, such as stratagem, delay, the use of spies and alternatives to war itself, the making and keeping of alliances, the uses of deceit, and a willingness to submit, at least temporarily, to more powerful foes. Sun Tzu is revered in Chinese and East Asian culture as a legendary historical and military figure. His birth name was Sun Wu and he was known outside of his family by his courtesy name Changqing The name Sun Tzu by which he is more popularly known is an honorific which means "Master Sun".

Sun Tzu's historicity is uncertain. The Han dynasty historian Sima Qian and other traditional Chinese historians placed him as a minister to King Helü of Wu and dated his lifetime to 544–496 BC. Modern scholars accepting his historicity place the extant text of The Art of War in the later Warring States period based on its style of composition and its descriptions of warfare. Traditional accounts state that the general's descendant Sun Bin wrote a treatise on military tactics, also titled The Art of War. Since Sun Wu and Sun Bin were referred to as Sun Tzu in classical Chinese texts, some historians believed them identical, prior to the rediscovery of Sun Bin's treatise in 1972.

Sun Tzu's work has been praised and employed in East Asian warfare since its composition. During the twentieth century, The Art of War grew in popularity and saw practical use in Western society as well. It continues to influence many competitive endeavours in the world, including culture, politics, business and sports.

The ancient Chinese people worshipped the bronze and iron swords, where they reached a point of magic and myth, regarding the swords as “ancient holy items”. Because they were easy to carry, elegant to wear and quick to use, bronze swords were considered a status symbol and an honour for kings, emperors, scholars, chivalrous experts, merchants, as well as common people during ancient dynasties. For example, Confucius claimed himself to be a knight, not a scholar, and carried a sword when he went out. The most famous ancient bronze sword is called the “Sword of Gou Jian”.

This is one of a stunning collection of original archaic bronze age weaponry we acquired Many are near identical to other similar examples held in the Metropolitan in New York, the British royal collection, and such as the Hunan Provincial Museum, Hunan, China.

Ref; SOME OBSERVATIONS ON EARLY CHINESE BRONZE SWORDS
By
Anthony Dove and Alan Williams, The Wallace Collection} 65 publications

A complimentary display stand, will be included.
As with all our items, every piece is accompanied by a certificate of authenticity.  read more

Code: 24304