What was this Bronze item used for?

Originally posted by Signals
reply to post by Topato

 

This is strange but I'm going with

Annunaki French Tickler?

I think you're right. He did say it was 18mm x 31mm so this clearly rules out them being anything but Asian. Damn your lies, Sitchin!!

reply to post by Topato


Explanation: S&F!

At 1st I thought it might be a spur for horse riding etc... but then I thought it could be a link in a roman scourge/flagelum.





Personal Disclosure:

I had something similar for my washing line - but not quite.

Is it a gear for some kind of bow or a giant crossbow.

Didn't the Greeks dream up some fantastic defence weapons? I saw a hilarius programme of a group of people trying to reconstruct some of these ancient weapons and then fire them. They must have used bits like that.

reply to post by OmegaLogos


Wow it looks like a perfect fit in the flagelum/scourge.

I mean with that hole I assumed it was either part of a link or have some kind of rod go through it... (part of some ancient tool/machine?)

Good work!

reply to post by Topato


it looks like a crank latch, for a sail-boat used to trim the sails.. lots of brass used ---it wont rust easily--

reply to post by Topato


i could be wrong, but it would be too heavy to be used for a torture/pleasure device,,,

especially as the picture depicts ,,, with THAT many, who would be strong enough to "throw-it" around???

reply to post by darrman


The bronze item pictured fits the second torture device. Note how the picture shows two rows of pointy bits. It also has fewer pieces overall. Given the size of the bronze item (18mm x 31mm) it wouldn't weigh more than 15 grams or so? Be nice to have a weight of the object. I'm betting it's not that heavy though. So the whole contraption wouldn't weigh more than a few pounds? Heavy enough to do nasty hurts, but not heavy enough to tire the user.

I would say its a spur

definately not a gear or a part of a mechanism

Originally posted by Magantice
reply to post by chr0naut

 

I know who you are, Dont even try to deny it. You are that guy at the oil change place that tried to sell me some headlight fluid and windshield wiper timing gears. You are soooooo busted.

No, really, headlight fluid is an essential safety item. I know you might get it cheaper elsewhere but it's not something you should skimp on.

It is false economy to skimp on such things because it only leads to a full replacement of things like Nover-Trunions further down the line, and that can be really expensive.

PS: Your trunk monkey was looking a bit on the bony side. Have you been feeding it regularly enough?

A valve handle.

Are you sure it isn't modern? I'd need a blueprinted look at it to rule out machine made. May be a pulley, a gear, or a farming tiller as one poster mentioned. Have not read the thread, just chiming in. Nice patina, but where's your proof it is old, as you suggest?

reply to post by starless and bible black


It was found in Eastern Europe in the Balkans on a dig site, along with many other ancient artifacts. Trust me, it's old. Roman empire possibly.

And yes it's light. Around 50 grams ( I don't have a scale, I'm just guestimating here).

Originally posted by Topato
reply to post by starless and bible black

 

It was found in Eastern Europe in the Balkans on a dig site, along with many other ancient artifacts. Trust me, it's old. Roman empire possibly.

And yes it's light. Around 50 grams ( I don't have a scale, I'm just guestimating here).

Okay....

What site? What location? What culture were they associating with the site? What was the date of the other ancient artifacts, and what did they look like? Pictures or information on the dig would be very helpful.

Originally posted by Topato
MEASUREMENTS: 18 mm x 31 mm.

Sorry completely forgot to include those. But yeah, relatively small.

Then it's probably a gear. Interesting.
I am, among other things, a machinist, by the way, and I can say that, despite a lifelong compulsion to learn how to improvise things and being good at it, I would be hard pressed to make the Antikythera mechanism without modern machine tools like lathes and milling machines. Even with a drill press, die grinder, and modern measuring instruments, it would take a long, long time.

reply to post by Byrd


It's Simple Professor , It's a MACE Head . A Primitive Form of Club that went on a Stick .

Originally posted by Zanti Misfit
reply to post by Byrd

 

It's Simple Professor , It's a MACE Head . A Primitive Form of Club that went on a Stick .

That would be a Lilliputian mace head, right?
You DO know that 18x31mm = abt. 3/4"x1 1/4"?

reply to post by JohnnyCanuck


LOL , a Representation of a Actual sized one in the form of Jewelry ?

reply to post by Byrd


To be honest I don't know what site exactly. I wasn't there. This was sent to me. The other artifacts were also confirmed to be 1st - 3rd century A.D.

Also I am not here to prove some kind of authenticity. I am asking about the function/purpose of the item. It is around the time period stated based on the other items found and that is not debatable.

Great theories so far. I'm still leaning toward the scourge/flagelum.

www.ancientresource.com...

" Roman bronze flagellum or scourge (Cat 'o' Nine Tails) punishment instrument. 1st-4th century AD. One piece from the end of a leather whip used to inflict punishment upon soldiers when they acted against orders. A fascinating piece of history. 28 mm max diameter. Some barbs broken in antiquity, possibly from extensive use. This would account for it having been discarded (and replaced). Found in a Roman trash-pit near a Legionary encampment in Eastern Europe. "


Bingo. Found a similar piece after extensive search of scourge/flagelum. Pictures in the above link.

Originally posted by Topato
reply to post by Byrd

 

To be honest I don't know what site exactly. I wasn't there. This was sent to me. The other artifacts were also confirmed to be 1st - 3rd century A.D.

Also I am not here to prove some kind of authenticity. I am asking about the function/purpose of the item. It is around the time period stated based on the other items found and that is not debatable.

Great theories so far. I'm still leaning toward the scourge/flagelum.

edit on 20-4-2011 by Topato because: (no reason given)

I understand... but the thing is we can't make a good guess unless we know more about it. If it was found in a Roman town, that would lean toward one interpretation. If it was found in a Roman fortress, that would lead to another one. And the location in the fortress is important (personal house, burial, stables area, bath area...)

The object has been cleaned and seems to be photographed in some sort of museum or collection setting. Stuff in the field looks really awful, and if there was any kind of crust on it, that has been removed. Really, anything else you could tell us about it would help.

I suspect someone somewhere knows exactly what it is and that somewhere along this chain of "whoa! Weird object!" messages, someone decided to "mess" with folks and say it's an unknown artifact.