MACCURDY— CULT OF THE AX 



resembling those known to Egypt. The most dominant of these in 

 the upper Baule district is the parade ax of worked copper, with a 

 ring at the grip end suggesting the scepter of the god Ptha (fig. 14). 

 Thus both in the Old World and in the New, in the past as well 

 as in the present, the ax has been man's faithful ally; a weapon of 

 attack and defense, a useful tool; a symbol of power and protection, 

 as well as of sacrifice, fit emblem of the gods. No wonder that 

 during the Middle Ages, and even later, stone celts were looked 

 upon as having fallen from the sky, as being veritable thunderstones. 



Yale University 

 New Haven, Connecticut 



[315] 



