Ax Blade (Celt)
Unknown Artist
1500–500 BCE
Medium
Copper
Dimensions
4 x 6 1/2 in. (10.2 x 16.5 cm)
Classification
Metalwork
Culture
India
Department
Asian Art
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of Anita and Stanley Eisenberg, 1986
Accession Number
1986.497.5
Tags
Art Historical Context
This copper ax blade, known as a celt, hails from ancient India around 1500–500 BCE, a formative period in the region's Bronze Age. Crafted by an unknown artisan, it measures a practical 4 x 6½ inches (10.2 x 16.5 cm), designed for use as both a tool for chopping wood and possibly a ceremonial or status symbol. Its classification as metalwork highlights early advancements in Indian metallurgy, where copper—sourced from local mines—was hammered and shaped into durable forms, predating widespread bronze alloys. Associated with the Gandhara region (modern-day northwest India and Pakistan), this ...