C. 1000-800 BC, Celtic Bronze Age. Bronze axe head with short curved blade, elongated, cylindrical cheek with a single rib running around the outside and a reinforced, flaring socket. Bronze weaponry production flourished from the 2nd millennium BC to about 700 BC when it was gradually replaced by iron. Swords, axe heads, spears and arrows were exchanged via trade and war and are discovered in both civic and ritual context. A mace head such as this one would have been an important symbol of rank, and have served a purpose in warfare, but also in religious contexts as mace heads were common votive offerings in shrines. Excellent condition; mounted on custom-made stand.Size: L:45mm / W:105mm ; 340g; Provenance: Obtained from a B.C.F; previously in a collection formed in the 1980s on the UK art market.