A Unique South German Late 15th Century Foot Soldier's Axe
This used to be in my collection some 20 years ago.
The head struck with a Gothic maker's mark of characteristic shape, a cross with four pellets, deeply struck three times in the Late Gothic tradition; the hardened blade significanty fire-welded (forge-welded) to the softer iron head. The original unstained ash haft branded with an (arsenal?) mark, N or Z (for Nuremberg or Zurich?).
Heavily patinated overall.
Overall length 119.7 cm, the head 27.4 x 22.0 cm.
Foot soldier's axes of this kind in perfect condition are almost unrecorded. There is an exact illustration of such a fighting axe in Albrecht Altdorfer's painting for the St. Sebastian altar in the monastery of St. Florian near Linz, Austria, 1515-19 (see attachments).
Best,
Michael
Last edited by Matchlock; 4th March 2012 at 08:30 PM.
|