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Artifact: Mace Head Location Discovered: Silwan Village, Kidron Valley Date: c. 3000 B.C. Material: Stone Height: 2 inches Diameter: 2.75 inches |
This stone mace head has been dated back to the Chalcolithic period, circa. 3000 B.C. While the actual marble colored head is a genuine artifact the handle is modern and recreated. The original handle was most likely made of wood. The stone mace was a common hand weapon used throughout the ancient Near East before axes and swords began to dominate the battlefield. Mace heads were typically made of stone and were sometimes coated with copper during later periods (1).
In addition to being used as weapons, maces were often used as symbols of authority, as can be seen in the Narmer Palette, an ancient artifact featuring the earliest-known Egyptian pharaoh, King Narmer, holding a mace. A scaled-down replica of the Narmer Palette can be seen at the Liberty Biblical Museum. The mace head pictured here was found in the Kidron Valley, on the outskirts of the Old City of Jerusalem. It was likely used by a member of a Canaanite tribe in the area some time after the Flood and prior to the calling of Abraham in Genesis 12.
In addition to being used as weapons, maces were often used as symbols of authority, as can be seen in the Narmer Palette, an ancient artifact featuring the earliest-known Egyptian pharaoh, King Narmer, holding a mace. A scaled-down replica of the Narmer Palette can be seen at the Liberty Biblical Museum. The mace head pictured here was found in the Kidron Valley, on the outskirts of the Old City of Jerusalem. It was likely used by a member of a Canaanite tribe in the area some time after the Flood and prior to the calling of Abraham in Genesis 12.
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(1) Yigael Yadin, The Art of Warfare in Biblical Lands: In the Light of Archaeological Study (New York: McGraw Hill, 1963), 11-12.
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