Does anyone know if there are any finds of viking throwing axes?
I know that the among re-enactors popular "fransisca" was used by the francs, the anglosaxons and possibly the merovingians but is there any indication that it was used by the vikings as well?

If anyone can shed some light over the subject of viking axes and/or give me a recommendation for a suitable replica of a find I would be more than happy.

/Ville

The Mammen axe found in Demark is dated to 970-971 and is a throwing axe.

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Alexi

Thanks Alexei
I see your logic. Not sure I can see the details on the axe, but monitor is small and eyesight is poor. A supplementary question if I may. How do we know which was the upper side of the head? Are you basing that on the slope of the edge or the pattern or was it found hafted? No, sorry, I don't have any francisca details, so you will have to remain a bit less happy than would otherwise have been the case.
regards
Geoff

Here is three papers on the fransisca (unfortunately in german...wich I do not understand to well).

I do not know wether the mammen axe is a throwing axe or not, but if you say it is, than many more axes are. I say the shape of the mammen seems to be a bit off when it comes to throwing, but who knows maybe it works.

I prefer to simply describe the Mammen axe as a small hand-axe, nothing more. Could it be an axe dedicated to throwing? Sure, but there's absolutely no way of knowing that for certain. When I look at this particular axe I don't see an upswept upper surface but rather a downswpet lower surface, much like the shape found on many large axes of the period. The corrosion isn't that severe so I don't think there was a significant upsweep to the upper point. I don't see anything that would mark it as a weapon specifically used for throwing. The only mass-produced version of this axe is the Hanwei version which seems to have an overall geometry far different than the original.

I have a problem with the whole concept. Why throw an axe--with an edge very difficult to align relative to the target--instead of a javelin, which concentrates more weight and energy on a smaller point and might also use slightly less iron? I'm not doubting that axes were thrown, I just don't understand the logic. I'd rather use a simple sling and stone than throw a complex, comparatively expensive axe....

intresting thought actully, why throw an axe?

My friend is into axe throwing, his does it very well. ive watched him many times in the past.
he'd rather throw a spear or javalin then an axe but when he does "toss" the axe you can see the raw power and brute strength when it hits. ive seen him put in throw chain mail aswell.

the mammen axe looks like a throwing axe to me......maybe Bodvar used it as a small hand axe, but whos to say he never throw it once or twice?

All these subjects are great, but not really what I asked for.

As far as I remember, throwing axes are not very prominent in the sagas; of course, in battle, one would throw ANYTHING. In one instance in King sverres saga, a fighter throws his sword at the enemy king during a naval battle.

Without having tried a lot, I would say that the defining characteristic of a throwing axe is the short shaft; Long hafted axes don't fly very well. From later finds, pictoral and litterary sources, we know that many of the "hand axes" where long hafted, measuring 80-110 cm in length. Throwing these accurately would be troublesome.
A short hafted axe can be thrown easily, but is less useful in hand to hand combat.

As for the upward point on the axehead, this is a feature shared by just about every kind of viking axe, with the posible exception of the type C.