Bronze axes from Tapaninkylä

Two narrow-headed bronze axes were found in Tapaninkylä, Helsinki, in the 1840s. The axes are among the finest bronze objects in Finland. They are decorated with various line, dot and spiral patterns. This type of bronze axe is called a palstave. These axes are of the Danish type and date from approximately 1500–1300 BCE based on typology. Palstaves have flanges above the blade for attaching a wooden handle. Palstaves were made from bronze by casting into a mould and were suitable for both working and fighting.

The axes of Tapaninkylä were found as a pair near the Bronze Age shoreline. Bronze objects sacrificed in pairs in Scandinavia and Central Europe have been associated with the Bronze Age cult of divine twins, but it is very uncertain whether the axes of Tapaninkylä can also be associated with this same belief.

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