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Details
LOT 1042
Western Asiatic Paddle-Shaped Axehead
3RD MILLENNIUM B.C.
6 1/4 in. (335 grams, 16 cm).
A copper-alloy axehead with roughly lozenge-shaped butt, oblong socket and paddle-shaped cheeks; incised concentric lines following the outline of the butt and flared, projecting knop at the centre. [No Reserve]
Provenance
Early 1990s London collection.
Acquired on the UK art market.
From a private collection, Lancashire, UK.
Literature
See Gernez, G., L’armament en métal au Proche et Moyen-Orient: des origines a 1750 av. J.C., Paris, 2007, fig.2.16, pls.86-88, for the type.
Footnotes
The axe belongs to subtype H2.J.b of the Gernez classification. These axes are characterised by decoration often executed with remarkable care and technical skill. The enlargement and indentation of the back of the collar varies, whilst the shape of the blade is, by contrast, standardised, with divergent rectilinear edges and a straight cutting edge or, more rarely, a rounded cutting edge, as in the example offered here.
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