[Einar Drønnesund]

Does anyone have any stats for historical axe heads? I've been making some viking axes lately, and getting the basic shape is easy enough, but I'm just guessing when it comes to cross sections and thickness, which of course means that I'm not sure weather or not the weight of my axes fall within historical accuracy yet.

If anyone can provide pics of historical axes with a few measurments and weight, or even from good modern replicas, I can extrapolate from that, and will give you all virtual hugz in gratitude.

[Jeff Pringle]

Some axes were heavy wood-cutting wedges, others light, thin-bladed weapons. I'd stay well under a kilo for most of the Viking-period axes.

Download the 120 MB pdf of Petersen’s “De Norske Vikingesverd,” then figure out how big the original book is, he’s got scaled images of every ax type from the Norwegian Viking period.
Also check out this PDF –
Eine finnische Prunkaxt aus Lettland
http://fornvannen.se/pdf/1960talet/1967_115.pdf
Weights are few and far between in my library, but if you can scare up archaeological reports they usually give dimensioned drawings from more than one angle, and weights are possible.
Icelandic axes:
K?- type –L 20,4cm; Br. ~8,3; Th. . 4,2
H-type – 16,5; 10; 4,5
I-type – L – 4,5
M-type – 17,3; 16; 3,3
The famous Mammen Axe is about 18cm from blade to back of poll and had a cutting edge of 11cm before the corners rusted away.

Petersen pdf:
http://stud.imma.dk/deltahak/nils.anderssen/norskesverd.htm

Edit - here is a photo of an axe that shows that 3rd dimension...

[Jeff Pringle]

Axes from Højby Sø, 1150-1200AD roughly of the same form as the above ax:
18 cm long Weight 703 g.
16.5 cm long, 618 g.

Edit: see also "Ancient Northern European Axes" downloadable from here:

http://www.gransfors.com/htm_eng/index.html

[Robin O]

Here is a god link to our history museeums archives online

http://mis.historiska.se/mis/sok/sok.asp

sword -svärd
axe-yxa
knife-kniv
spearhead-spjutspets

this is the searchresults for iron age to viking age axes
http://mis.historiska.se/mis/sok/resultat_for...5&page

[Jeremy V. Krause]

Jeff,

A little off topic but that is a beautiful shot of that viking hilt.
Jeremy