Interesting projectile

[katana]

Hi Michael and 'Nando,
the patina does suggest that it is not as ancient as the seller suggests....Victorian ? or perhaps stored in 'ideal conditions'.

How about the pointer from a simple (but large) inclinometer ? or mounted on a ship's beam, to freely pivot (nail through the hole) to measure the pitch or roll of a ship ?? possibly, but extremely unlikely.

The 'tail' section had a diamond cross section, I think if this was to be fixed statically I would expect one or both sides to be flat. For the same reason I think a harpoon head is also unlikely, a flat profile would allow more accurate fitting to a shaft. (+ the fact, that large harpoons were nearly all marked with the ship, or owners initials, or the maker etc)

Some sort of decorative counter weight or pendulum ??

Regards David