Egyptian battle axes

[Dave Beatty]

I was wondering if anybody out there knows where Minifigs got the idea for their Egyptian battle axe figures (Z505).  These are what I'd call medium infantry with leather armor, shield slung over the back and wielding a 2 meter long battle axe two handed.

Also, I have some old TTG figures labeled "kepesuman" and wonder if anyone knows what that means (it does not come up in Mr. Google).

Cheers,

Dave in Oregon

[Duncan Head]

I haven't seen the Minifig. What kind of axe is it? The only one that I recall often shown two-handed - in modern reconstructions, at least  - is the mace-axe as shown here.

"Kepesuman" is presumably "khepesh-man".

[Andreas Johansson]

While probably more likely a typo for h, the 'u' of kepesuman could conceivably be the Egyptian plural ending, the form being based on a transcription of ḫpšw "sickle-swords" (sg ḫpš).

[Patrick Waterson]

Agree with Andreas and Duncan - either a misprint for 'kepeshman' or somebody trying to be clever.

I do not have any images of Minifigs Z505; if wearing leather style armour and a large axe this suggests a late period and Assyrian influence.  The traditional Egyptian axes were the mace-axe Duncan describes plus the (single-handed) 'eye' axe and the akas, sometimes considered to be a throwing axe but now generally recognised as a melee helmet-penetrator.

A brief rundown of extant Egyptian axes is given here.  Ignore the clutch of adverts at the top of the page and scroll down.

There is a curious listing on eBay showing some rather curious grey objects said to be 'Egyptian axes'.  Do they look anything like the Minifigs offering?

Otherwise, I suspect it is based on the relief depicted in the first picture in this TourEgypt article, with an axeman pounding away two-handed at one of the gates.  This is a 19th Dynasty scene and reminds one of Neo-Assyrian depictions of assaults on cities, although the latter usually had more detail.

[Dave Beatty]

Yep, they are both the two handed 'mace-axe' and they look a lot like that picture so that is most likely what both Minifigs and TTG used for inspiration.  I've only ever seen one figure wielding such a thing in any of the Egyptian reliefs or wall paintings I've ever seen so they must have been rare. Thanks Duncan, Patrick and Andreas!