The axe, or ax, is an implement that has been used for millennia to shape, split and cut wood, harvest timber, as a weapon and a ceremonial or heraldic symbol. A millennium (pl millennia) is a period of Time equal to one thousand Years (from Latin la mille, thousand and la annum Wood is hard fibrous lignified structural tissue produced as secondary Xylem in the stems of Woody plants notably trees but also shrubs In Agriculture, the harvest is the process of Gathering mature crops from the fields Reaping is the cutting of Grain Lumber or timber is Wood in any of its stages from felling through readiness for use as structural Material for Construction, or A weapon is a Tool used either in Hunting, or attack or defence in Combat for the purpose of subduing enemy personnel or to destroy enemy weapons A ceremony is an activity infused with Ritual significance performed on a special occasion Heraldry in its most general sense encompasses all matters relating to the duties and responsibilities of officers of arms. The musical instrument is spelled Cymbal. A symbol is something --- such as an object, Picture, written word a sound a piece The axe has many forms and specialized uses but generally consists of an axe head with a handle, or helve. A handle is a part of or attachment to an object that can be moved or used by hand
The earliest examples of axes have heads of stone with some form of wooden handle attached (hafted) in a method to suit the available materials and use. In Geology, rock is a naturally occurring aggregate of Minerals and/or Mineraloids The Earth's outer solid layer the ‘ Lithosphere Hafting is a process by which an Artifact, often bone, metal or stone, is attached to a handle or strap Axes made of copper, bronze, iron, steel appeared as these technologies developed. Copper (ˈkɒpɚ is a Chemical element with the symbol Cu (cuprum and Atomic number 29 Bronze is any of a broad range of Copper alloys, usually with Tin as the main additive but sometimes with other elements such as Phosphorus Iron (ˈаɪɚn is a Chemical element with the symbol Fe (ferrum and Atomic number 26 Steel is an Alloy consisting mostly of Iron, with a Carbon content between 0 The axe is an example of a simple machine, as it is a type of wedge, or dual inclined plane. In Physics, especially Mechanics, a simple machine is a mechanical device that changes the direction or magnitude of a Force. A wedge is a triangular shaped tool a compound and portable Inclined plane, and one of the six classical Simple machines It can be used to separate This article deals with the physical structure For related terms see Canal inclined plane, Cable railway, Funicular, or Fixed-wing This reduces the effort needed by the wood chopper. It splits the wood into two parts by the pressure concentration at the blade. The handle of the axe also acts as a lever allowing the user to increase the force at the cutting edge (try using an axe head without a handle and you will see what is meant) - not using the full length of the handle is known as choking the axe. For fine chopping using a side axe this sometimes is a positive effect, but for felling with a double bitted axe it reduces efficiency.
Generally cutting axes have a shallow wedge angle, whereas splitting axes have a deeper angle. Most axes are double beveled, i. e. symmetrical about the axis of the blade, but some specialist broadaxes have a single bevel blade, and usually an offset handle that allows them to be used for finishing work without putting the user's knuckles at risk of injury. A broadaxe is a large-headed Axe. Usually one side is flat and the other side beveled though sometimes both sides are beveled Less common today they were once an integral part of a joiner and carpenter's tool kit - not just a tool for use in forestry. A tool of similar origin is the billhook with short handle and long blade it can be used for tasks where an axe is unsuitable. The billhook is a traditional cutting tool used mainly in European Agriculture and Forestry, but also common in other parts of the world where it was However in France and Holland the billhook often replaced the axe as a joiner's bench tool.
Most modern axes have steel heads and wooden handles, typically hickory in the USA and ash in the UK and Europe, although plastic or fiberglass handles are also common. Trees in the genus Carya (from Ancient Greek κάρυον " Nut " are commonly known as Hickory. An ash can be any of four different tree genera from four very distinct families; most commonly in a combined form (e Plastic is the general common term for a wide range of synthetic or semisynthetic organic solid materials suitable for the manufacture of industrial products Fiberglass (also called fibreglass and glass fibre see Spelling differences) is material made from extremely fine Fibers of Glass. Modern axes are specialized by use, size and form. Hafted axes with short handles designed for use with one hand are often called hand axes but the term hand axe refers to axes without handles as well. Hatchets tend to be small hafted axes often with a hammer on the back side ( the poll). See Hatchet (novel for the Young adult novel. See Hatchet (film for the Horror film. A hammer is a tool meant to deliver an impact to an object The most common uses are for driving nails fitting parts and breaking up objects
Axes were frequently used in combat as they were easy to make, and the village edge tool makers were frequently the armourers to the lord of the manor in times of war.
Contents |
History
Initially axes were probably not hafted. Brescia ( Lombard: Brèsa) is a city in the region of Lombardy in northern Italy. Italy (Italia officially the Italian Republic, (Repubblica Italiana is located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe, and on the two largest The first true hafted axes are known from the Mesolithic period (ca. 6000 BC). Axes made from ground stone are known since the Neolithic. Few wooden hafts have been found from this period, but it seems that the axe was normally hafted by wedging. Birch-tar and raw-hide lashings were used to fix the blade.
Sometimes a short section of deer antler (an "antler sleeve") was used, which prevented the splitting of the haft and softened the impact on the stone blade itself, helping absorb the impact of each axe blow and lessening the chances of breaking the handle. Antlers are the usually large and complex horn -like appendages of most Deer species mostly worn by males only for some species such as Caribou by both The antler was hollowed out at one end to create a socket for the axehead. The antler sheath was then either perforated and a handle inserted into it or set in a hole made in the handle instead.
The distribution of stone axes is an important indication of prehistoric trade. thin sectioning is used to determine the provenance of the stone blades. In Europe, Neolithic 'axe factories', where thousands of ground stone axes were roughed out are known from many places, such as:
- Great Langdale, Great Britain (tuff)
- Rathlin Island, Ireland (porcellanite)
- Krzemionki, Poland (flint)
- Plancher-les-Mines, France (pelite)
- Val de'Aoste, Italy (omphacite).
Stone axes are still produced and in use today in parts of Irian Jaya, New Guinea. The Mount Hagen area was an important production centre.
From the late Neolithic/Chalcolithic onwards, axes were made of copper or copper mixed with arsenic. These axes were flat and hafted much like their stone predecessors. Axes continued to be made in this manner with the introduction of Bronze metallurgy. Eventually the hafting method changed and the flat axe developed into the ‘flanged axe,’ then palstaves, and later winged and socketed axes.
The Proto-Indo-European word for "axe" may have been pelek'u- (Greek pelekus πέλεκυς, Sanskrit parashu, see also Parashurama), but the word was probably a loan, or a Neolithic wanderwort, ultimately related to Sumerian balag, Akkadian pilaku- .
Symbolism, ritual, and folklore
At least since the late Neolithic, elaborate axes (battle-axes, T-axes, etc. The Minoan civilization was a Bronze Age civilization which arose on the island of Crete. The 2nd millennium BC marks the transition from the Middle to the Late Bronze Age. The bronze Arkalochori Axe is a second millennium BC Minoan votive Double axe excavated by Spyridon Marinatos in 1934 in the Arkalochori Arkalochori (also Arkalokhori is a modern city on the island of Crete and the archaeological site of a Minoan Sacred cave in eastern Crete ) had a religious significance and probably indicated the exalted status of their owner. A religion is a set of Tenets and practices often centered upon specific Supernatural and moral claims about Reality, the Cosmos In Sociology or Anthropology, social status is the honor or prestige attached to one's position in Society (one's Social position) Certain types almost never show traces of wear; deposits of unshafted axe blades from the middle Neolithic (such as at the Somerset Levels in Britain) may have been gifts to the deities. The Somerset Levels (or Somerset Levels and Moors as they are less commonly but more correctly called is a sparsely populated Wetland area of central Somerset See also List of deities A deity is a Postulated Preternatural or Supernatural Being, who is always
In Minoan Crete, the double axe (labrys) had a special significance, used by women priests in religious ceremonies. Labrys is the term for a doubleheaded Axe, known to the Classical Greeks as pelekys ( or Sagaris, and to the Romans as a bipennis In 1998 a labrys, complete with an elaborately embellished haft, was found at Cham-Eslen, Canton of Zug, Switzerland. The Canton of Zug ( German Kanton) is one of the 26 Cantons of Switzerland. Switzerland (English pronunciation; Schweiz Swiss German: Schwyz or Schwiiz Suisse Svizzera Svizra officially the Swiss Confederation The haft was 120 cm long and wrapped in ornamented birch-bark. The axe blade is 17,4 cm long and made of antigorite, mined in the Gotthard-area. The serpentine group describes a group of common rock-forming hydrous Magnesium Iron phyllosilicate (()3 Minerals they The haft goes through a biconical drilled hole and is fastened by wedges of antler and by birch-tar. It belongs to the early Cortaillod culture. The Cortaillod Culture is one of several archaeologically defined cultures belonging to the Neolithic period of Switzerland.
In the Roman fasces, the axe symbolized the authority to execute and were often used as symbols for Fascist Italy under Mussolini. Ancient Rome was a Civilization that grew out of a small agricultural community founded on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 10th century BC Fasces (ˈfæsiːz a Plurale tantum, from the Latin word fascis, meaning "bundle" symbolize summary power and Jurisdiction In Politics, authority ( Latin Auctoritas, used in Roman law as opposed to Potestas and Imperium
In folklore, stone axes were sometimes believed to be thunderbolts and were used to guard buildings against lightning, as it was believed (mythically) that lightning never struck the same place twice. History The concept of folklore developed as part of the 19th century ideology of Romantic nationalism, leading to the reshaping of oral traditions to serve modern ideological A thunderbolt is a traditional expression for a discharge of Lightning or a symbolic representation thereof Lightning is an atmospheric discharge of Electricity, which typically occurs during Thunderstorms and sometimes during volcanic eruptions or A rumour or rumor (see spelling differences) is often viewed as "an unverified account or explanation of events circulating from person to person and This has caused some skewing of axe distributions.
Steel axes were important in superstition as well. Steel is an Alloy consisting mostly of Iron, with a Carbon content between 0 Superstition ( Latin superstitio, literally "standing over" derived perhaps from standing in awe used in Latin as a unreasonable or excessive belief A thrown axe could keep off a hailstorm, sometimes an axe was placed in the crops, with the cutting edge to the skies to protect the harvest against bad weather. Hail is a form of precipitation which consists of balls or irregular lumps of ice (hailstones The weather is a set of all the phenomena occurring in a given Atmosphere at a given Time. An upright axe buried under the sill of a house would keep off witches, while an axe under the bed would assure male offspring. Witchcraft, in various historical anthropological religious and mythological contexts is the use of certain kinds of Supernatural or magical powers Male (♂ refers to the sex of an organism or part of an organism which produces small mobile Gametes called spermatozoa. In Biology, offspring are the product of Reproduction, a new Organism produced by one or more Parents Collective offspring may be known
Basques, Australians and New Zealanders have developed variants of rural sports that perpetuate the traditions of log cutting with axe. The Basques (Euskaldunak are a people who inhabit a region spanning over parts of north-central Spain and southwestern France. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. The Basque variants, splitting horizontally or vertically disposed logs, are generically called aizkolaritza (from aizkora: axe). Wood-chopping contests are a popular form of herri kirol or rural sport in the Basque Country.
In Yorùbá mythology, the oshe (double-headed axe) symbolizes Shango, Orisha (god) of thunder and lightning. The Yoruba religion is the religious beliefs and practices of the Yoruba people both in Africa (chiefly in Nigeria and Benin Republic) An Orisha (also spelled Orisa or Orixa) is a spirit or deity that reflects one of the manifestations of Olodumare (God in the Yoruba spiritual It is said to represent swift and balanced justice. Shango altars often contain a carved figure of a woman holding a gift to the god with a double-bladed axe sticking up from her head.
Parts of the axe
The axe is comprised of two primary components, the axe head, and the haft.
The axe head is typically bounded by the bit (or blade) at one end, and the poll (or butt) at the other, though some designs feature two bits opposite each other. The top corner of the bit where the cutting edge begins is called the toe, and the bottom corner is known as the heel. Either side of the head is called the cheek, which is sometimes supplemented by lugs where the head meets the haft, and the hole where the haft is mounted is called the eye. The part of the bit that descends below the rest of the axe-head is called the beard, and a bearded axe is an antiquated axe head with an exaggerated beard that can sometimes extend the cutting edge twice the height of the rest of the head.
The axe haft is sometimes called the handle. Traditionally, it was made of a resilient hardwood like hickory or ash, but modern axes often have hafts made of durable synthetic materials. Antique axes and their modern reproductions, like the tomahawk, often had a simple, straight haft with a circular cross-section that wedged onto the axe-head without the aid of wedges or pins. A tomahawk is a type of Axe native to North America traditionally resembling a Hatchet with a straight shaft Modern hafts are curved for better grip and to aid in the swinging motion, and are mounted securely to the head. The shoulder is where the head mounts onto the haft, and this is either a long oval or rectangular cross-section of the haft that's secured to the axe head with small metal or wooden wedges. The belly of the haft is the longest part, where it bows in gently, and the throat is where it curves sharply down into to the short grip, just before end of the haft, which is known as the knob.
Forms of Axes
Axes designed to cut or shape wood
- Felling axe — Cuts across the grain of wood, as in the felling of trees. In single or double bit (the bit is the cutting edge of the head) forms and many different weights, shapes, handle types and cutting geometries to match the characteristics of the material being cut.
- Splitting Axe — Used to split with the grain of the wood. Splitting axe bits are more wedge shaped. This shape causes the axe to rend the fibres of the wood apart, without having to cut through them, especially if the blow is delivered with a twisting action at impact.
- Broad axe — Used with the grain of the wood in precision splitting. A broadaxe is a large-headed Axe. Usually one side is flat and the other side beveled though sometimes both sides are beveled Broad axe bits are chisel-shaped (one flat and one bevelled edge) facilitating more controlled work. A chisel is a Tool with a characteristically shaped Cutting edge (such that wood chisels have lent part of their name to a particular grind) of blade on
- Adze — A variation featuring a head perpendicular to that of an axe. An adze or adz (ædz is a tool used for smoothing rough-cut Wood in hand Woodworking. Rather than splitting wood side-by-side, it is used to rip a level surface into a horizontal piece of wood.
Axes as weapons
Mêlée
- Battle axe — In its most common form, an arm-length weapon borne in one or both hands. This is a list of Melee weapons It includes modern and historical but not fictional weapons from fantasy or Role-playing games ' Compared to a sword swing, it delivers more cleaving power against a smaller target area, making it more effective against armor, due to concentrating more of its weight in the axehead. However, it allows much less precision than a sword does.
- Tomahawk — used almost exclusively by Native Americans, its blade was originally crafted of stone. For indigenous peoples in the United States other than Hawaii and Alaska see also Native Americans in the United States. Along with the familiar war version, which could be fashioned as a throwing weapon, the pipe tomahawk was a ceremonial and diplomatic tool. A similar type of axe is the African nzappa zap. The Nzappa zap (also referred to as " Zappozap " " Kasuyu " is a traditional African Weapon similar to an axe or Hatchet It has traditionally been a favorite of marines since Vietnam.
- Spontoon Tomahawk - A French trapper and Iroquois collaboration, this was an axe with a knife-like stabbing blade instead of the familiar wedged shape.
- Valaška — used by Slovak shepherds, it could double as a walking stick. The valaška (ciupaga fokos бартка топірець is a long thin light Axe used in the past centuries by Shepherds and other Gorals in the } The Slovaks or Slovakians are a western Slavic People that primarily inhabit Slovakia and speak the Slovak language, which is " Walking stick " may also refer to a stick insect, of the Order Phasmatodea, which uses camouflage to resemble a stick or twig
- Ono — a Japanese weapon wielded by sōhei warrior monks. is the Japanese word for an "axe" or a "hatchet" and as such it is used to describe various tools of the similar basic structure The are the dominant Ethnic group of Japan. Worldwide approximately 130 million people are of Japanese descent of these approximately 127 million are residents of Japan were Buddhist warrior monks of feudal Japan. At certain points of history they held considerable power obliging the imperial and military governments to collaborate
Pole Arm
- Halberd — a spearlike weapon with a hooked poll, effective against mounted cavalry. This is an article about a particle accelerator For uses of spear, see Spear or Spear (disambiguation. The Cavalry (from French cavalerie) is the second oldest of the Combat Arms, and as Soldiers or Warriors who fought mounted on
- Pole axe — designed to defeat plate armour. The poleaxe is a type of European polearm which was widely used by medieval Infantry. Plate armour is personal Armour made from large Metal plates worn on the Chest and sometimes the entire Body. Its axe (or hammer) head is much narrower than other axes, which accounts for its penetrating power.
- Danish axe — A long-handled weapon with a large flat blade, often attributed to the Vikings. The Danish axe is an early type of Polearm, primarily used during the transition between the European "Viking Age" and early Middle Ages A Viking is one of the Norse ( Scandinavian Explorers Warriors Merchants, and pirates who raided and colonized wide areas
Ranged
- Throwing axe — Any of a number of ranged weapons designed to strike with a similar splitting action as their Mêlée counterparts. A throwing axe is an axe that is used primarily as a Missile weapon. A ranged weapon or missile weapon is any Weapon that launches a Projectile or that is a projectile itself A melee weapon (from French "mixed" referring to groups of fighters interlocked in close combat is any Weapon that does not involve a projectile — that is These are often small in profile and usable with one hand.
- Hurlbat — An entirely metal throwing axe sharpened on every auxiliary end to a point or blade, practically guaranteeing some form of damage against its target. A hurlbat or whirlbat is a Ranged weapon consisting of an entirely metal throwing Axe sharpened on every auxiliary end to a point or Blade, practically
- Francisca or Frankish axe — a short throwing weapon of the European Migration Period, the name of which may have become attached to the Germanic tribe associated with it: the Franks (see France). The francisca (or francesca) is a Throwing axe used as a weapon during the Early Middle Ages by the Franks, among whom it was a characteristic The Franks or Frankish people (Franci or gens Francorum) were West Germanic tribes first identified in the 3rd century as an Ethnic group The Migration Period, also called Barbarian Invasions, or sometimes Völkerwanderung ( German for "wandering of peoples" is the English name The Franks or Frankish people (Franci or gens Francorum) were West Germanic tribes first identified in the 3rd century as an Ethnic group This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics.
Axes for other uses
- Firefighter's axe or fire axe — It has a pick-shaped pointed poll (area of the head opposite the cutting edge). Firefighters are rescuers extensively trained primarily to put out hazardous Fires that threaten civilian populations and property to rescue people from car accidents collapsed Firefighters are rescuers extensively trained primarily to put out hazardous Fires that threaten civilian populations and property to rescue people from car accidents collapsed It is often decorated in vivid colors to make it easily visible during an emergency. Its primary use is for breaking down doors.
- Pulaski — An axe with a mattock blade built into the rear of the main axe blade, used for digging ('grubbing out') through and around roots as well as chopping. The pulaski is a special hand tool used in wildland firefighting. mattock is a hand Tool similar to a Pickaxe. It is distinguished by the head which makes it particularly suitable for digging or breaking up moderately hard ground In addition to the McCloud (a tool similar to a hoe/rake combination), the pulaski is an indispensable tool used in fighting forest fires, as well as trail-building, brush clearance and similar functions. A wildfire, also known as a wildland fire, forest fire, brush fire, vegetation fire, grass fire, Peat fire,
- Splitting maul — A splitting implement that has evolved from the simple 'wedge' design to more complex designs. Some mauls have a conical 'axehead'; compound mauls have swiveling 'sub-wedges', among other types; others have a heavy wedge-shaped head, with a sledgehammer face opposite. A sledgehammer is a Tool consisting of a large flat head attached to a Lever (or handle
- slater's axe or zax — An axe for cutting roofing slate, with a long point on the poll for punching nail holes, and with the blade offset laterally from the handle to protect the worker's hand from flying slate chips. A slater, or slate mason is a Tradesman who covers buildings with Slate. Slate is a fine-grained foliated homogeneous, Metamorphic rock derived from an original Shale -type Sedimentary rock composed of Clay
- Climbing axe or ice axe — A number of different styles of ice axe are designed for ice climbing, and, though less used today than in previous times, for rock work, especially in enlarging steps used by climbers. An ice axe is a multi-purpose Mountaineering tool carried by practically every mountaineer UserStan Shebs for a timetable --> Climbing is the activity of using one's hands and feet (or
In the illustration to the left, from an 1872 "Art of Travel" publication, figure 1 represents a light axe or pick which has the great advantage of lightness and handiness, with a single blade, or adze, suited to step-cutting and with a small hammer-head at the back which balances the pick, and is useful in inserting pegs into rock and ice. A pickaxe is a Hand tool with a hard head attached Perpendicular to the handle An adze or adz (ædz is a tool used for smoothing rough-cut Wood in hand Woodworking. Figure 2 represents a travellers' axe, slightly heavier than the first, and which, at least at the time, was recommended as adapted for mountain work of all kinds.
Hammer Axe
Hammer axes (or axe-hammers) typically feature an extended poll, opposite the blade, shaped and sometimes hardened for use as a hammer. The name axe-hammer is often applied to a characteristic shape of perforated stone axe used in the Neolithic and Bronze Ages. Iron axe-hammers are found in Roman military contexts, e. g. Cramond, Edinburgh and South Shields, Tyne and Wear.
Today they are used in many different fields of work, completing all jobs from splitting wood to removal engines from vans. Tungsten is often added for weight as an upgrade, as well as six foot handles for the heavier jobs that require added force and "massive blows" such as cutting automobile frames, slicing brake rotors, rough body work, home construction, home de-construction, etc.
See also
- Sagaris
- Fasces
- Battle axe people Corded Ware culture
- Nzappa zap
Literature
Neolithic axes
- W. Sagaris was the Greek name for a weapon used by Scythian tribes by the Persians, Mossynoeci, and others and according to Aristarchus Fasces (ˈfæsiːz a Plurale tantum, from the Latin word fascis, meaning "bundle" symbolize summary power and Jurisdiction The Corded Ware culture, alternatively characterized as the Battle Axe culture or Single Grave culture is an enormous European Archaeological horizon that The Nzappa zap (also referred to as " Zappozap " " Kasuyu " is a traditional African Weapon similar to an axe or Hatchet Borkowski, Krzemionki mining complex (Warszawa 1995)
- P. Pétrequin, La hache de pierre: carrières vosgiennes et échanges de lames polies pendant le néolithique (5400 - 2100 av. J. -C. ) (exposition musées d'Auxerre Musée d'Art et d'Histoire) (Paris, Ed. Errance, 1995).
- R. Bradley/M. Edmonds, Interpreting the axe trade: production and exchange in Neolithic Britain (1993).
- P. Pétrequin/A. M. Pétrequin, Écologie d'un outil: la hache de pierre en Irian Jaya (Indonésie). CNRS Éditions, Mongr. du Centre Rech. Arch. 12 (Paris 1993).
Medieval axes
- Schulze, André(Hrsg. ): Mittelalterliche Kampfesweisen. Band 2: Kriegshammer, Schild und Kolben. - Mainz am Rhein. : Zabern, 2007. - ISBN 3-8053-3736-1
Superstition
H. Bächtold-Stäubli, Handwörterbuch des deutschen Aberglaubens (Berlin, De Gruyter 1987).
References
- Section about types of axes is based on a Quicksilver Wiki article at [1] under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License. Neal Town Stephenson (born October 31, 1959) is an American writer known primarily for his Science fiction works in the Postcyberpunk genre
External links
Dapyx Software network: MP3 Explorer | Ebook Manager | Zenithic