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

to Catling, a violent purpose for the double axe. Although this double ax is larger than
most examples, its size does not preclude it from retaining a utilitarian function.
The gradation between tools and weapons is notably blurred when evaluating
razors and daggers. Razors are often designated as objects of personal use, 53 yet leaf-
shaped versions appear very similar to some dagger forms. The Late Helladic II objects
from the Pylos Kato Englianos grave circle demonstrate this ambiguity. Blegen
differentiated double-edged razors (leaf-shaped) from daggers within the burials, despite
their close morphological similarity. 54 When identified by their shape, razors and daggers
take on the functional interpretations that their names convey. Objects identified as razors
may be misnomers, and are incorporated in this dataset within the functional category of
utilitarian objects. Razors likely served an array of tasks; as such, they are indeterminable
tool forms, though many resemble daggers and vice versa. The distinction between
daggers and other tools, specifically knives, is also problematic in some Cypriot contexts.
A Middle Cypriot blade has several interpretations, including a thrusting weapon
(Balthazar), dagger (Catling), or the more commonly accepted knife (Stewart, Åström). 55
This example reveals how terminology and classification differ not only regionally but
also according to each scholar.
Once an object’s functional category is identified, its type may be classified. As
some implements bear a close resemblance to other types, minute differences are
essential at this stage. For instance, single axes and adzes are comparable in their
appearance and dimensions. Differentiation between these tool forms relies primarily
53 Tripathi 1988, 96; Iakovidis 1982; Papadopoulos 1978.
54 Blegen et al. 1973, 156-161, 163-164, 167-168.
55 Balthazar 1990, 324; Åström 1977-78.
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