Not a coin, but definitely ancient! During my trips to the Middle East, especially Lebanon, I’ve come across a lot of antiquities. Some are incredibly good fakes (I've been fooled more than once), and some have a genuinely authentic feel to them. On my most recent visit, I came across this: The owner labeled it as a Phoenician arrowhead, but I’ve seen similar Greek arrowheads. I decided to take a chance and bought it since it wasn’t too expensive. After closer inspection, I noticed scratch marks along the tip, almost as if it was filed. Everything else seems authentic to me, but I could be wrong. What do you guys think? I've heard it could be a bad cleaning job, since the arrow looks pretty authentic. But i could be wrong, i just dont come across fake arrow heads often.
The length of the tang (? the part that goes into the arrows shaft) convince me it's legit. Bronze or iron age makers would have understood this length should be as long as possible, longer than the arrow head itself, for optimum strength. Neither accompanying illustration reflect a sufficiently long tang. Z
It sure looks like it was sharpened by a stone wheel and the arrow was turned once. But man, it’s kinda wild that those file marks have lasted this long. You’d think they’d fade, especially since bigger details like the barbs have faded almost halfway. Anyway, there are more signs of authenticity than forgery. Thank you for the reply!
Hi Z. You're right about the shaft, but oddly, I don't see many arrowheads with long shafts! They're almost always the size of the arrowhead or smaller. Thanks for the feedback—I needed a second opinion. I got this arrowhead for $5. I've also got this Greek Dory spearhead (arrow for scale): Google Image for reference: The spearhead has a nice green patina on the inside of its shaft and is surprisingly lightweight. Next month, I’m going to start a forum on the random antiquities I find in the Middle East. Some of them are hilariously fake, and some are hidden gems. Stay tuned! K
