The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of April 24, 2024

Battle Axe

Battle Axe

late 1500s
steel, inset with copper rosette
Blade: 8.3 cm (3 1/4 in.); Head: 27.3 cm (10 3/4 in.)
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. John L. Severance 1916.1599
Location: not on view

Did You Know?

The haft or wooden handle of this axe is missing.

Description

The axe has been a favorite weapon in Europe for as long as armor has been worn. Although it was useful as a simple tool for chopping, battle axes could become a way of expressing personal style. They could be decorated and embellished without impeding their function. Inset into this axe head is a copper rosette.
  • Sir Samuel Rush Meyrick (1783-1848), Goodrich Court, Wales
    -1890
    Raol Richards, Rome, Italy
    -1916
    Frank Gair Macomber (1849-1941), Boston, MA, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art
    1916-
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • Catalogue of Arms and Armour. [Boston, Massachusetts]: [Frank Gair Macomber], 1900. cat. #535 archive.org
    Gilchrist, Helen Ives. A Catalogue of the Collection of Arms & Armor Presented to the Cleveland Museum of Art by Mr. and Mrs. John Long Severance; 1916-1923. Cleveland: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1924. Mentioned: p. 199, H60; Reproduced: Plate XLIII, H60 archive.org
    Cleveland Museum of Art, and Helen Ives Gilchrist. Handbook of the Severance Collection of Arms and Armor. 2d ed., 1948. Reproduction: p. 46 archive.org
    Fliegel, Stephen N. Arms and Armor: The Cleveland Museum of Art. [Cleveland, Ohio]: The Museum, 1998. cat. no. 123, p. 168
    Fliegel, Stephen N. Arms & Armor: The Cleveland Museum of Art. [Cleveland, Ohio]: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2007. cat. no. 124, p. 188
  • Armor Court Reinstallation. The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer).
  • {{cite web|title=Battle Axe|url=false|author=|year=late 1500s|access-date=24 April 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1916.1599