800 – 600 BC. Greek Hoplite Period. Socketed Bronze spearhead comprising a substantial leaf-shaped, lentoid-section blade with raised midrib, incised linear decoration and a long socket. Hoplites were the citizen-soldiers of Ancient Greece, where each city state was fiercely independent and could only be sustained through the military power of its male inhabitants. Hoplites primarily fought using the closed phalanx formation to allow best use of their frequently small numbers, and their principal equipment would have included large, circular (‘Argive’) shields and spears like this one. For more information on Greek hoplite warfare, see Donald Kagan and Gregory F. Viggiano (eds., 2013). Men of Bronze: Hoplite Warfare in Ancient Greece, Princeton University Press. Good condition; on a custom stand.Size: L:688mm / W:43mm ; 1kg; Provenance: Important London collection of Ancient art; formed in 1970s then passed by descent.