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Macehead

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from Tofthill, Tibbermore, Perthshire

Macehead
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This stone macehead was found at Tofthill at Tibbermore in Perthshire, and dates from between 3000 and 2000 BC. Maces could have been used as weapons, but were principally symbols of power and status.

The macehead is shaped very roughly like an egg, and has a shafthole towards the narrow end. It would originally have been fixed to the top of a handle of wood or other organic material by means of its shafthole.

Maces were used as symbols of power from the late 4th to the early 2nd millennium BC, particularly in the Northern Isles. Many are made from attractively coloured or patterned stones, and would have taken much time to make. This 'ovoid' type is very occasionally found in chamber tombs, and a few fancy decorated examples have been found in Britain and Ireland.

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