Iron axe-head

Roman Britain, 1st century AD
From Camerton, Somerset

This is the iron head from a very large military axe of extremely fine workmanship. It was stamped on the underside with a short inscription, probably a maker's mark, but this is now illegible. This type of large heavy axe was used mainly for felling trees and the basic shaping of large timbers. The Roman army was in constant need of great quantities of timber, mainly for the construction of fort defences and for the internal buildings.

R. Jackson, Camerton: a catalogue of late (London, The British Museum Press, 1990)