Mycenaean double-axe

Double axe in bronze with oval shaft hole. The cutting edges are in good condition, with signs of use. Although the surface was once a warm brown color, prolonged exposure to oxygen and mineral-rich environments has caused some corrosion and it is now covered with mottled-green patina. The double axe was an important symbol of the Minoans and Mycenaeans with distinctive features that represented power and authority, but was also used as a tool or weapon and is found in residential contexts. Object number: 127.022. Date: 13th–12th century B.C. Parallels: New York, Metropolitan Museum of Art 07.232.12, 24.150.11, 26.31.483; compare with London, British Museum 1897,0401.1467. References: Briggs, C. S. "Double Axe Doubts", Antiquity, vol. 47, no. 188, 1973, pp. 318; Rouse, W. H. D. “The Double Axe and the Labyrinth”, The Journal of Hellenic Studies, vol. 21, 1901, pp. 268–274; Harding, A., “Mycenaean Greece and Europe: the Evidence of Bronze Tools and Implements”, Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society, vol. 41, 1975, pp. 183–202; Blackwell, N. G., “Contextualizing Mycenaean Hoards: Metal Control on the Greek Mainland at the End of the Bronze Age”, American Journal of Archaeology, vol. 122, no. 4, 2018, pp. 509–39. Photo by Steve Morton