Item number: X23

The results after XRF testing

Year: circa 1300-700 BC

Material: Bronze

Size: 17.8 x 8.6 cm

Weight: 634.1 g

Provenance:

1. Robert Ricketts 2025

2. Parthenon Gallery Ltd, London

3. N. Forbes Collection

This object is a bronze spearhead, morphologically resembling specimens from the late Shang dynasty to the early Spring and Autumn period (circa 1300–700 BC).

Both the tip and the cutting edges of the spearhead remain unsharpened. It features no central ridge, with the wings on either side—also termed the blades—exhibiting a dropshaped, broad foliate profile and slightly convex surfaces. The socket is relatively short and is incised with thunder patterns (leiwen) that extend upward to the base of the foliate section. A rare eye-shaped motif occupies the base, which, together with the thunder patterns and the loops, collectively constitutes a stylized decoration resembling a crouching frog. Flanking the socket are two loops, or attachment rings, formed as semi-circles, which are hypothesized to have been used for securing the spearhead to the shaft with cords to prevent detachment. The opening of the socket is elliptical, designed for insertion of the shaft. Given the intricate ornamentation and the blunt nature of the tip, the functional attributes of this object conform more closely to those of a ritual vessel.

The spear represents one of the earliest hunting implements utilized by humankind, originating in the Paleolithic period and consisting of a detachable, acute tip mounted onto a long shaft. Bronze spearheads first emerged in the second phase of the Upper Erligang culture and subsequently became a common funerary artefact within Shang dynasty burials. From the Shang through the Zhou dynasties, the morphology of bronze spearheads evolved from narrow foliate configurations to broad foliate forms, before gradually narrowing again. While the narrow blade facilitated clean thrusting, the broad blade counteracted the structural deformation that relatively soft bronze would otherwise undergo upon heavy impact. Over time, longer sockets became the predominant configuration, while the lateral loops gradually disappeared by the late Western Zhou period.

物件編號: X23

XRF分析結果

年代: 公元前 1300-700 年

材質: 青銅

尺寸: 17.8 x 8.6 cm

重量: 634.1 g

來源:

1. 羅伯特·里基茨 2025

2. 倫敦帕特農藝廊

3. N. 福布斯舊藏

這是一件青銅矛頭，形態學上接近商晚期至春秋初期。

矛頭的鋒與刃均未開刃磨銳。中央無脊，兩側的翼部(或稱葉部)輪廓呈水滴狀的寬闊葉形，表面則呈微凸弧面。骹部較短，表面刻有雷紋，向上直至矛葉底部，底部則有罕見的眼狀紋飾，雷紋、眼狀紋飾與鈕環共同組成呈匍匐蛙型的裝飾。骹部兩側為鈕部(或稱繫部)，呈半環，一說以繫繩縛於柲(矛柄)上，防止矛頭脫落。骹口為橢圓形，作安柲之用。由繁複的裝飾以及圓鈍的矛尖來看，其用途更接近禮器。

矛是人類最早使用的狩獵工具之一，源於舊石器時代，以可拆卸的銳部裝置於長柄上構成。青銅矛則最早出土於二里崗上層文化二期，此後於商代墓葬中相當常見。由商至周，矛頭的形制由窄葉發展至闊葉，再逐漸收窄。窄葉便於刺擊，闊葉則可以避免較軟的青銅在受衝擊時產生的形變。骹部則逐漸以長骹為主，鈕環則於西周晚期逐漸消失。