Ancient bronze lion?

[RLve]

Can anyone help identify / share ideas on what this may be please?



Provenance unknown but probably Jordan. Weight 120g, height 54mm. From its appearance and weights it's almost certainly bronze.

It has a small hole in the base which has led me to speculate that it may have been mounted on a staff at some point?

It's a beautiful piece that has been on my bookcase for 15 years and curiosity has finally got the better of me.

I'm hoping there is someone out there who can help. I'd really like to know the age of the item and its original purpose.

Thank you in anticipation!

RLve

[cptsideways]

Looks like a snake to me

[Mr GrimNasty]

"Then the LORD said to Moses, 'Make a fiery serpent, and set it on a pole; and it shall be that everyone who is bitten, when he looks at it, shall live.' So Moses made a bronze serpent, and put it on a pole; and so it was, if a serpent had bitten anyone, when he looked at the bronze serpent, he lived."

(Numbers 21:8-9)

[jimmyjimjim]

Reddit /r/antiques is the thing for this, usually get a very good answer within a few hours.

[RLve]

Thanks. I'd always thought of it as being a lion or tiger but the snake theory is intriguing - more pics here.

[Hoofy]

Could be a sword handle.

[Rollin]

Hoofy said:

Could be a sword handle.

[gmasterfunk]

All you need is a staff 5 kadam high.... (not 6 ; is a common mistake in told)

Hth.

G.

[Drive Blind]

Lion?

Looks more like a turtle to me

[Tony Starks]

Ancient butt plug?

[Astacus]

Looks to me like its been in the sea for a while too, the green and white deposits

[RLve]

Well it certainly seems well travelled!

It could be a sword hilt but may be a bit small at ~2". I've tried reddit but can't upload for some reason, even with only 68K file.

[glenrobbo]

It looks like a bronze rendering of an animal foetus to me:
Are those forelimbs? And rear limbs? Not snakelike at all.

It does look to be 'of an age'.

[RLve]

jimmyjimjim said:

Reddit /r/antiques is the thing for this, usually get a very good answer within a few hours.

Thanks for the tip. From Reddit:

'Pretty sure it's a bronze bow nock, as you'd find on the tips of an archery bow. The bow string rests in the groove, allowing the bow to curve at the correct angle. Hard to say how old, but it's very early - at least 2,500 years old'

[anonymous-user]

I'm fairly certain it's part of the ark of the covenant.

[steviegunn]

That's clearly a Bronze Chestburster.

[jimmyjimjim]

RLve said:

jimmyjimjim said:

Reddit /r/antiques is the thing for this, usually get a very good answer within a few hours.

Thanks for the tip. From Reddit:

'Pretty sure it's a bronze bow nock, as you'd find on the tips of an archery bow. The bow string rests in the groove, allowing the bow to curve at the correct angle. Hard to say how old, but it's very early - at least 2,500 years old'

Thanks - I meant to have a look and see if you had posted it, but lost track.
They're surprisingly good there - identified something I (and the rest of the family) had wondered about for years in about 90 minutes...

[Hoofy]

RLve said:

jimmyjimjim said:

Reddit /r/antiques is the thing for this, usually get a very good answer within a few hours.

Thanks for the tip. From Reddit:

'Pretty sure it's a bronze bow nock, as you'd find on the tips of an archery bow. The bow string rests in the groove, allowing the bow to curve at the correct angle. Hard to say how old, but it's very early - at least 2,500 years old'

You can buy them at nocking shops.

[Cold]

[Celtic Dragon]

RLve said:

Thanks for the tip. From Reddit:

'Pretty sure it's a bronze bow nock, as you'd find on the tips of an archery bow. The bow string rests in the groove, allowing the bow to curve at the correct angle. Hard to say how old, but it's very early - at least 2,500 years old'

I'd need to see some corroborating evidence to support that claim. Bowyers (people who make bows) even back then knew not to add weight to the limb tips. The Turks used to use wooden sears to speed the bows up, but not weight. Given the size, it would also make the limb tip very small, and not be usable.

Sorry, but as an archer I find that one hard to believe.