The Arkalochori Axe is a 2nd millennium BC Minoan bronze votive double axe (labrys) excavated by Spyridon Marinatos in 1934 in the Arkalochori cave in Crete,[1] which is believed to have been used for religious rituals.[2] It is inscribed with fifteen symbols.
Arkalochori Axe | |
---|---|
Material | Bronze |
Created | c. 1650 BC |
Discovered | 1934 Arkalochori, Crete, Greece |
Discovered by | Spyridon Marinatos |
Present location | Heraklion, Crete, Greece |
It has been suggested that these symbols might be Linear A, although some scholars disagree.[3]
The Arkalochori axe and the Phaistos Disc are exhibited at the Heraklion Archaeological Museum (Galleries V and VII, respectively). They share some symbols.
Of the fifteen signs, two appear to be unique. The following suggestions for comparison with Linear A and Phaistos Disc glyphs are attributed to Torsten Timm (2004).[4] Reading top to bottom, right to left, the symbols are:
№ | Sign | Comment | Linear A | Phaistos Disc |
---|---|---|---|---|
01 | A 304 KA ?? | |||
02 | AB28 I | D39 | ||
03 | AB01 DA | |||
04 | D02 | |||
05 | ||||
06 | AB05 TO ?? | |||
07 | cf. 04 | D02 | ||
08 | AB80 MA | |||
09 | AB04 TE ? | D35 | ||
10 | cf. 04 | D02 | ||
11 | AB31 SA ?? | D19 | ||
12 | cf. 08 | AB80 MA | ||
13 | AB06 NA ?? | D23 | ||
14 | Root? | |||
15 | A338 ? |
Note that reading top to bottom, right to left after turning the inscription counterclockwise gives a different sequence and numbering of the glyphs.
6. Flouda, Georgia (2015). "Materiality and script: constructing a narrative on the Minoan inscribed axe from the Arkalochori cave", SMEA Nuova Serie 1: 43-56.