Ancient Near East, Luristan, ca. 1200 to 800 BCE. A bronze socketed axe-head, one of the most iconic weapon forms from ancient Luristan. Comes with custom stand. Size: 7.9" W x 3.2" H (20.1 cm x 8.1 cm); height on stand: 5.3" (13.5 cm).

The axe has a dramatically curved blade that terminates at a near-ninety-degree angle to the socket, with wide top and bottom edges and a thick bronze wire applied in the center of the blade that follows its shape until halfway down its length. The socket is narrow, with three applied bands of bronze coming out from the blade and wrapping around its upper portion. Jutting out from the socket, opposite the blade, are five thin spikes, secured near the socket with an additional bronze crossbar. This elaborate axe was made in a single cast, utilizing the lost wax technique.

Spike-butted axes have been excavated from graves at Bard-I Bal, Kutal-I Gulgul, and Khatunban, all in the Luristan region. Their function is unclear - large examples like this one and one held by the British Museum (130676) have thick, blunt blades that are at too sharp an angle from the socket to have ever been used as cutting tools. However, if they were hafted onto curved shafts, they could have been swung back and forth, using the spikes like a mace, and the blunted blade to pierce armor. They may also have been heirlooms, royal regalia, or manufactured solely to be grave goods.



Provenance: Ex-Kavet Collection, Massachusetts, acquired 1974

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#120289

Heavy, dark patina overall. End half of blade has been reattached with almost invisible repair.