A rare set of Ottoman throwing spears (Jarids) and quiver, Turkey, circa 1680

the plain steel arrowheads with quadrangular tips, wooden hafts and silver terminals formed as tubular sockets decorated with chased and engraved medallions containing floral sprays, the wooden quiver mounted with blue-green velvet, the silver chape, lock and suspension loops decorated en suite, the lock with traces of gilding

Overall in fair condition. The jarids have losses to the shafts, particularly to the upper sections, one with apparent restoration. The terminals, chape, lock and suspension loops with small nicks and rub marks, light darkening and minor losses throughout. Major losses to the velvet. As viewed
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Ottoman and Persian jarids, or javelins, were military and sporting weapons used especially by warriors on horseback. In L'Etat militaire de l'empire ottoman, the Italian soldier, Luigi Ferdinando Marsigli (1658-1730), describes bouts hosted by the Ottoman Sultan in which riders attempt to defeat their opponents by hitting them in the head with blunted jarids. The present examples, however, with their four-edged points, were most likely meant for battle or hunting, as they could probably penetrate most chainmail and inflict deadly wounds on their victims. Jarids were often carried in a saddle quiver, such as the one in this lot, and their survival rate is extremely low, as they were meant to be thrown. It is thus exceptional that these three have survived alongside their matching quiver.

A set of related examples is illustrated in the exhibition catalogue Paris 1988, p.44, no.59. For examples from the Karlsruhe haul of Türkenbeute captured after the failed seige of Vienna in 1683, see Die Karlsruhe Türkenbeute, Munich, 1991, pp.214-5, no.161. For further examples from the Czartoryski Collection at the Czartoryski Museum, Cracow (inv.no.XIV-168, a, b, c) and the Kórnik Library of the Academy of Sciences, Kórnik (inv.no.MK 2053), see the exhibition catalogue, War and Peace. Ottoman-Polish Relations in the 15th-19th centuries, Istanbul, 1999, p.191, no.91.