Western Asiatic, Ca. 1200-700 BC. An attractive ceremonial axe head with flared blade and wide, cylindrical shaft tube. On the back, a solid bronze animal climbs the poll of the axe. The diligently worked-out muscular body is fixed on the shaft. Bronze weaponry production flourished from the 2nd millennium BC to about 700 BC when it was gradually replaced by iron. Swords, mace heads, spears, and arrows were exchanged via trade and war and are discovered in both civic and ritual contexts. An axe head such as this one would have been an important symbol of rank, and have served a purpose in warfare, but also in religious contexts as mace heads were common votive offerings in shrines. Size: L:145mm / W:100mm ; 650gProvenance: Property of a North London gentleman; previously acquired on the UK/European art market in the 1970s.