A Sumerian Palace and the "A" cemetery at Kish, Mesopotamia

158 A SUMERIAN PALACE AND "A" CEMETERY, KISH
point at the end of their shanks. This facilitated their being inserted in a wooden
shaft without splitting it, and would suggest that reeds were not used for arrow-
shafts nor bamboos for spears, as anything with a hollow interior would not
require an edge on the head of the weapon.^' It is not yet certain whether the
copper sheets from which most of the objects were cut were cast in sheet form.
The fact that most of the smaller objects seem to have been beaten out of square
or rectangular rods of copper would imply that the metal was hammered into
this form before sale or for convenience in working. This squaring, however,
seems in most cases too good to have been done with a hammer, and its extreme
regularity suggests casting.
In connection with these weapons with cutting edges it is noteworthy that
not a single example of a mace-head was found in the graves, though specimens
were found in the palace beneath. It would seem that this tjrpe of weapon had
already passed out of use, except for ceremonial purposes, and the fact that one
was placed in the hands of the god Ningirsu in the above mentioned Stele may
probably be put down to conservatism. A mace-head would be practically useless
against the thick head-pieces worn by some of the soldiers of Eannatum.*"
BATTLE AXES Plates XXXIX and LXII
Battle axes fall naturally into two classes—those which are socketed, as
Figs. 1-4 of Plate LXII and those which are adze-shaped, as Figs. 12-13, 18-20 of
Plate LXL A socketed battle axe was found in graves 74, 80, 104, 107, 128, and 135,
and others which obviously come from graves were found in the mound. The finest
examples are illustrated in Plates XXXIX, No. 7 and LXII, Figs. 2 and 4.
Unfortunately, two of the graves in which battle axes occurred had been disturbed
anciently, so the position of only four could be determined. In graves 107 and 135
the axe was placed a short distance from the front of the face, and in burial 80 it
was close to the top of the head. In grave 104 the weapon lay just behind the
pelvis, which suggests that it was carried in the belt, as are the knobkerries of the
natives of the present day. The axe shown in Plates XXXIX, No. 7, and
LXII, Fig. 1, is of cast copper, and is 106 mm long. It was found at a depth of a
metre below the surface of the ground, and evidently once was part of the equipment
of a burial (Reg. No. 2034; Baghdad). The similar axe (the lower one in
No. 7) comes from burial 104. It is 142 mm long, and the thickness of the blade
at the centre is 7.50 millimetres. It is also of cast copper, and is in such excellent
condition that the patina could readily be scaled off (Reg. No. 2448; Oxford), ^^
The third battle axe (the middle one in No. 7) is of a different type. It is 133
mm long, and has a curved cutting edge at the end, which is 37 mm wide. Behind
this, the blade narrows and widens out again slightly at the haft. This latter is
formed by bending the end over to form a socket, which is strengthened by
turning over the sides to hold the tongue in place (see also Plate LXII, Fig. 3,
Reg. No. 2342; Oxford). The axe found in grave 74 is made of very thin sheet
copper. Its haft is formed by rolling over the end farthest from the cutting edge
to form a socket for the handle. The blade is of the same shape as Fig. 1 of Plate