China, Shang Dynasty, ca. 1600 to 1046 BCE. This is a fine example of one of the earliest bronze weapons - it is an axe blade with a round socket and a flared, simply decorated butt. The blade has a distinctive "doubled" look to it, as if it is two blades stacked on top of each other. We owe the preservation of these ancient bronzes to their burial, either in storage pits, where they were hastily hidden by fleeing members of a defeated elite house, or, more commonly, in tombs. During the Shang dynasty, members of the royalty were accompanied in the afterlife by their bronzes, ceramics, weapons, amulets, and ornaments, and even the human and animal entourage that surrounded them in life: servants, bodyguards, horses, chariots, and charioteers. A fine bronze axe blade like this one would have been part of this grave retinue. Size: 9.5" L x 2.5" W (24.1 cm x 6.4 cm)

Provenance: Ex - S.D. Collection, West hollywood, CA

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#115335

Excellent encrusted patina; shape clear.