A Unique Roman Folding Knife Handle with Eagle Ornament from Philadelphia in Cilicia

Abstract

Numerous artefacts were discovered inside a pit located in the necropolis of ancient Philadelphia, which belonged to Cilicia from time to time. This study suggests that the pit might be a votive deposit of some kind with objects placed within it in a planned sequence. The folding knife, which is one of the many metal finds discovered in this pit and the subject of this study, is a unique find never recorded before in Asia Minor. Its handle bears an eagle figure, which also makes it unique. Folding knives are found at Roman garrison sites in Germania and Britannia, and the figures depicted on their handles vary. The Philadelphia folding knife is associated with military iconography and also with the cult of the dead.