1884.119.448

Collection type

Object

Description

Unidentified object - possibly a bow-puller or amulet

Long description

Cast object shaped like spectacles with a protruding 3-armed mid-section fashioned like an animal head. [GB 6/5/2005]

Geographical reference

Italy

Europe > Southern Europe > Italy

Unknown

Person

Maker Unknown Maker

Field collector Unknown Collector

PRM source Augustus Henry Lane Fox Pitt Rivers founding collection

Date / Period

Archaeological period: Iron Age Etruscan

Date collected

By 1884

Acquisition information

Donated: 1884

Materials and processes

Material Bronze Metal, Material Copper Alloy Metal, Process Cast, Process Incised

Dimensions

Length x Width x Height: max 61 x 44 x 23 mm

Object numbers

Accession number: 1884.119.448

Research and responses

These 'bow pullers' were examined by Lucy Shipley as part of the Fell funded project Characterizing the World Archaeology collections. She noted that McDaniel (1918) suggested that rather than performing a practical function as their name suggests, these small objects, consisting of two holes with a small plate between them from which protrudes three spikes, varying in length and sharpness, were used as charms to protect the wearer and more particularly their horses. While no further research has investigated these enigmatic objects further, their use as amulets would appear to be supported somewhat by the animal faces inscribed upon the opposing side of the plate to the spikes. See McDaniel, W.B. 1918: The so-called bow-puller of antiquity. American Journal of Archaeology 22(1), 35–43. [AS 04/11/2010]

Search terms: Figure, Animal Gear, Archery Weapon, Animal Figure, Unidentified Object, Animal Harness, Archery Accessory