Middle and Late Bronze Age Metal Tools from the Aegean, Eastern ...

instances of Aegean imagery, leading Evely to conjecture that “later manifestations [of
shaft-hole axes] in artistic settings may be viewed as an anachronism, or drawn obliquely
from other cultural influences: thus, a Syrian form appears in some seal stones, and the
Linear A and B syllabary signs are ultimately derived from Egyptian sources.” 312
Since
the shaft-hole ax was incorporated into Aegean imagery during a time when the
instrument was sparse in that region, the artistic inspiration for the gold bracelet must
have developed outside the Aegean.
An array of shaft-hole ax types is extant, and many of the Anatolian and Syro-
Palestinian examples incorporate decorative features, either as simple designs or
zoomorphic images. The area of the shaft hole provides an ideal space for diverse and
creative flourishes. Some are so elaborate in their design that practical functionality
seems compromised. Consequently, richly adorned blades may be indicative of
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ritual/prestige items rather than effective implements. The fenestrated shaft-hole axes
can also be understood as symbols of authority and prestige, for the two large holes in the
center of the blade weakened the object and prevented it from being an effective cutting
device—either as a weapon or a tool. 314 The occurrence of these objects in gold or as
miniatures in the Levant further demonstrates that they were markers of high status. 315
A fenestrated ax head with a crescent shape and a shaft hole, otherwise unattested
in the Aegean world, was found in a cist from the LH IIA Vaphio tholos tomb (Plate
312 Evely 1993, 58.
313 For instance, consider the elaborate ceremonial shaft-hole ax found in a shrine at Ugarit; the object has
an iron blade, copper shaft area depicting two lions and a boar, which are outlined with gold inlay. See
Galliano and Calvet 2004, 166 entry 150.
314 Philip 1989, 49-53.
315 For a gold fenestrated shaft-hole ax from MBA Byblos, see: Aruz, Benzel and Evans 2008, 55 entry 27;
for miniature, fenestrated axes from MBA Ugarit, see: Contenson 1992, 189, plate CLXIX, 3.
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