Help Requested ID'ing Dug Axe

[Atlantia]

Originally Posted by laEspadaAncha

Hi Gene,

How are you?

I've attached a photo below, though admittedly it is just a cropped close-up of the original photo...

Best,

Chris

Hi Chris,

I'm well thanks mate... Work commitments have been a bit overwhelming! Far too many people are called to their reward at this time of year I'm always glad when xmas and the early part of the year is over.

With your 'axe-kus'
I'm plumping for India/Ceylon. The size and the spike just look too much like an ankus for me to think of anything else.

How's things with you? Good start to the year?

Best
Gene

[laEspadaAncha]

Originally Posted by Atlantia

Hi Chris,

I'm well thanks mate... Work commitments have been a bit overwhelming! Far too many people are called to their reward at this time of year I'm always glad when xmas and the early part of the year is over.

With your 'axe-kus'
I'm plumping for India/Ceylon. The size and the spike just look too much like an ankus for me to think of anything else.

How's things with you? Good start to the year?

Best
Gene

Things are well on my end, I suppose. I finally got around to opening my shop in November 2011, and this has been both good and bad from a collecting point of view - unlike before, where I was spending a considerable amount of free time hunting for items, I no longer have that luxury and have to wait to see what comes walking through the door.

But on the other hand, a lot of cool stuff comes walking through that door! It's just that relatively little of it is sharp or pointy.

Interesting thoughts regarding this Odd Axe Out... I've never seen a axe-bladed ankus myself. Is such an animal known to exist?

The axe blade is integral to the shaft, FWIW...

Cheers,

Chris

[fernando]

In my humble opinion, this has got to be something else
Wait 'til others come in with a 'bingo' revelation

[Atlantia]

Originally Posted by fernando

In my humble opinion, this has got to be something else
Wait 'til others come in with a 'bingo' revelation

LOL, well at least I have a guess

[Atlantia]

Some 'ankus' are real village 'blacksmith' pieces, like these two from Timo's collection.
I'm sure the all steel axes and all types inbetween have some 'simple' examples.

Anyway, that's it for me! Apart from this half baked theory my locker is emtpy!

[M ELEY]

Very nice and rare find!!! Your friend isn't mistaken. This is a colonial 'halberd battle ax/tomahawk', pre-1800, as seen in Indian Tomahawks and Frontiersmen Belt Axes', page 59 (Fig 9), pg 60 (Fig 11, 12, 13), all made of a solid one piece of iron, all with top spikes and varying degrees of decoration (one piece even has the haft as a spike, allowing for a throwing implement with spikes all sides (yikes!). Several of these are in the National Museum of the American Indian.
I will be cautious with my comments, though. There are fakes out there and there are obviously look-alikes in other cultures (The rounded circular patterns we see branded into Afghan knives exactly match Inuit designs. Axes from Finland bearing brass tack decoration to the haft exactly resembles 19th c. Native American decor). The only reason I won't vote 100% on my opinion is that the examples shown in Hartzler's volume do have a back spike to the front blade. His books show other examples that don't, but they are not solid iron. This ax in general has the look of the so-called Missouri war hatchets as well as a number of spike-axes as used by the Indians, fur traders, soldiers and explorers of the time.

[fernando]

Great input, Mark
Tha's what i call/ed 'Bingo'

[Atlantia]

Originally Posted by M ELEY

Very nice and rare find!!! Your friend isn't mistaken. This is a colonial 'halberd battle ax/tomahawk', pre-1800, as seen in Indian Tomahawks and Frontiersmen Belt Axes', page 59 (Fig 9), pg 60 (Fig 11, 12, 13), all made of a solid one piece of iron, all with top spikes and varying degrees of decoration (one piece even has the haft as a spike, allowing for a throwing implement with spikes all sides (yikes!). Several of these are in the National Museum of the American Indian.
I will be cautious with my comments, though. There are fakes out there and there are obviously look-alikes in other cultures (The rounded circular patterns we see branded into Afghan knives exactly match Inuit designs. Axes from Finland bearing brass tack decoration to the haft exactly resembles 19th c. Native American decor). The only reason I won't vote 100% on my opinion is that the examples shown in Hartzler's volume do have a back spike to the front blade. His books show other examples that don't, but they are not solid iron. This ax in general has the look of the so-called Missouri war hatchets as well as a number of spike-axes as used by the Indians, fur traders, soldiers and explorers of the time.

Lets hope so! That would be a right score!!

[Atlantia]

Originally Posted by laEspadaAncha

Things are well on my end, I suppose. I finally got around to opening my shop in November 2011, and this has been both good and bad from a collecting point of view - unlike before, where I was spending a considerable amount of free time hunting for items, I no longer have that luxury and have to wait to see what comes walking through the door.

But on the other hand, a lot of cool stuff comes walking through that door! It's just that relatively little of it is sharp or pointy.

Interesting thoughts regarding this Odd Axe Out... I've never seen a axe-bladed ankus myself. Is such an animal known to exist?

The axe blade is integral to the shaft, FWIW...

Cheers,

Chris

There are ankus with 'leaf' ends, and there are hybrids that are sometimes claimed as being ankus variants.
Just a thought. Might well be completely wrong.
A shop? Sounds great mate!!!