The looped spear-head is a distinct type; and, according to Sir John Evans, it is hardly known outside the British Isles. It is more numerous in Ireland than in England or Scotland. Of the spear-heads in the Academy Collection here figured, No. 1 is, with a single exception, the largest known to have been discovered in Ireland. It is 27 inches in length, and composed of fine gold-coloured metal, run very light and thin; it is furnished near the socket with two loops, and has a broad concave bevel round the edge. This weapon was found near Maghera, Co. Londonderry.
No. 2, which measures 13½ inches in length, is composed, like No. 1, of bright gold-coloured bronze. It is remarkable for the breadth of its blade, and for the position of its loops as shown in the illustration.
No. 3 is 15 inches long, and presents a very unusual form, being concave on its curved sides. Here, as usual, we find loops upon the socket; they, however, present a somewhat rare feature, being connected with the base of the blade by narrow lateral fillets. It will be seen that the end of the socket is richly engraved with lines and chevrons, like those which are found in great variety upon many objects of the Bronze Age.
No. 4 is an excellent and typical example of the leaf-shaped spear-head so often found in Ireland. It is 13½ inches in length, and has no side loops, but the socket is pierced for the reception of a rivet, which was probably of wood, by which the head was secured to the shaft or handle. It may be observed that the sockets of this class of spear-head are almost invariably of abnormal diameter, and that the metal of the head is usually of a duller or more copper-like colour than that of the ordinary bronze of the period.
No. 5 is a curious specimen composed of pure bronze, and unique in the collection. It is 13⅞ inches in length; and its peculiarity is in the position of the side loops—one appearing near the end of the socket, while the other is considerably above it, and very close to the side of the blade. The loops, too, are of unusual character, being almost semicircular in form, while features of their kind are, as a general rule, of a quadrangular shape; the socket is quite plain.
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Fig. 1. Fig. 2. Fig. 3. Fig. 4.
Ornaments on Spear-heads.
Ornamented Spears.—The spear-head indicated by fig. 1 in the accompanying illustration measures 7½ inches in length. It is a beautiful example in every respect, and when first lifted from the bed of the Shannon, was as bright as gold. It has no patina, and is now of a dull yellow colour. Fig. 2 is drawn upon a larger scale than that adopted in the general view of the spear-head, in order to illustrate the design with greater clearness. The work is very similar to some that appears on gold lunettes and other relics of the Bronze Age to be seen in the Academy collection. Fig. 3 illustrates the socket of a spear-head boldly and richly decorated in the same style. Fig. 4 is a full-sized engraving of the smallest bronze spear, or javelin-head, preserved in the collection. Like Fig. 4 of the group of spear-heads already given, it is composed of dark-coloured bronze, and exhibits, for the size of the object, a most disproportionate diameter in the socket.