Originally mounted on a wooden shaft, this extremely large arrowhead probably served as a symbol of rank or a baton of command. It is decorated with royal Bohemian monograms and badges in addition to religious invocations in medieval Czech. It bears the monogram AR for Albert, king of Bohemia and Hungary (reigned 1437–39). It is also stamped with the so-called Turkish arsenal mark, indicating that it was captured by Ottoman forces, perhaps in the campaign of 1439 in which Albert was killed, and was subsequently stored in the Turkish arsenal in Constantinople (now Istanbul).
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Artwork Details
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Title:Ceremonial Arrowhead
Date:1437–39
Geography:probably Prague
Culture:Bohemian, probably Prague
Medium:Steel, copper alloy
Dimensions:L. 10 7/8 in. (27.5 cm); W. 1 9/16 in. (4 cm); Wt. 14.4 oz. (410 g)
Classification:Archery Equipment-Arrows & Quivers
Credit Line:Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Ronald S. Lauder, 1988
Object Number:1988.170
Inscription: Inscribed on obverse, left flange: vak sem nabozre myloste, ma myla (Go with God's grace, my dear / my love); on the right flange: ar (probably the monogram for albertus rex, or King Albert), m (monogram for marya, or Mary); on reverse, left and right flanges: y (monogram for yhesus, or Jesus); on the right flange: pane myley (sweet Lord).
Marking: Stamped with the so-called Turkish arsenal mark.
Ottoman Arsenal of Saint Irene, Istanbul; said to have been discovered in July 1983 in Port Alfred, Cape Province, South Africa by a private collector (1983–87; Arms, Armour, and Militaria sale, Sotheby's, London, October 28, 1987, no. 138, sold to Lauder, for £9350); Mr. and Mrs. Ronald S. Lauder, New York (1987–88; their gift to MMA).
Prague. Prague Castle. "Charles IV, Emperor by the Grace of God: Culture and Art in the Reign of the Last of the Luxembourgs 1347–1437," February 16–May 21, 2005, no. 15.8.2.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Charles IV, Emperor by the Grace of God: Culture and Art in the Reign of the Last of the Luxembourgs 1347–1437," September 19, 2005–January 3, 2006, no. 15.8.2.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Prague, The Crown of Bohemia 1347-1437," September 19, 2005–January 3, 2006.
Prague Castle. "Charles IV, Emperor through the Grace of God: Culture and Art in the Time of the Last Luxembourgs, 1347–1437," February 16–May 21, 2006.
Budapest. Museum of Fine Arts, Budapest. "Sigismundus – Rex et Imperator, Art and Culture During the Time of Sigismund of Luxembourg, 1387–1437," March 18–June 18, 2006, no. 5.9.
Luxembourg. Musée National d'Histoire et d'Art Luxembourg. "Sigismundus – Rex et Imperator, Art and Culture During the Time of Sigismund of Luxembourg, 1387–1437," July 13–October 15, 2006, no. 5.9.
Kalmár, Johannes von. "Pfeilspitzen als Würdezeichen." Zeitschrift für Historische Waffen– und Kostümkunde, Zeitschrift für Historische Waffen- und Kostümkunde, 15, n.s.v. 6 pp. 218–21 (similar arrowheads illustrated).
Nickel, Helmut. "Böhmische Prunkpfeilspitzen." Sborník Národního musea v Praze, (1969), pp. 102–163, no. 3.
Arms, Armour, and Militaria. London: Sotheby's, London, October 28, 1987. no. 138.
Nickel, Helmut, and Stuart W. Pyhrr. "Arms and Armor." Recent Acquisitions (Metropolitan Museum of Art) (1988), p. 23, ill.
Dolínek, Vladimír, and Jan Durdík. The Encyclopedia of European Historical Weapons. London: Hamlyn, 1993. p. 172, fig. 202 (a similar arrowhead).
Boehm, Barbara Drake, and Jiri Fajt. Prague: The Crown of Bohemia, 1347–1437, edited by Barbara Drake Boehm, and Jiri Fajt. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2005. pp. 323–24, no. 156c, ill.
Fajt, Jiri, and Barbara Drake Boehm, eds. Karel IV., Císař Boží Milosti: Kultura a Umění za Vlády Posledních Lucemburků 1347–1437 (Charles IV, Emperor by the Grace of God: Culture and Art in the Reign of the Last of the Luxembourgs 1347–1437). Prague: Správa Pražského hradu, 2006. pp. 114–15, no. 15.8.2, ill.
Zsombor Jekely, Szilárd Papp, and Györgyi Poszler. Sigismundus Rex et Imperator: Kunst und Kultur zur Zeit Sigismunds von Luxemburg, 1387–1437, edited by Dr. Imre Takács, Chief Curator, Szépmuvészeti Múzeum. Mainz: Verlag Philipp von Zabern, 2006. pp. 446–47, no. 5.9, ill.
Breiding, Dirk H. A Deadly Art: European Crossbows, 1250–1850. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2013. pp. 126–29, no. 47c, fig. 6.6.
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