Stone axes as tools, valuables and symbols (3300-1900 BC)

Jan Turek

This paper is a study on the changing social significance and value
of polished stone axes during the Eneolithic period in Bohemia,
examining the social context of stone axe production, distribution
and consumption. I would like to show how artefacts of originally
practical function became important objects of exchange,
communication and social interaction. Subsequently these same
attributes demonstrate the differences between social categories in
burial customs. Finally I am going to look at stone battle-axes as a
relic of stone symbols in the age of bronze.


URL: http://www.kar.zcu.cz/texty/TurekND.htm