GRE: Έκθεση δικέφαλων τσεκουριών ή λαβυρών, από τα πιο γνωστά σύμβολα του μινωικού πολιτισμού.
The symbolism of the labrys can be found since the Middle Bronze Age in Cretan, Thracian, Nuragic, Greek and Byzantine art and mythology. The labrys also appears in African religious and mythological symbolism and contrary to what one might believe, the depictions in modern "Viking" art of double-headed axes are purely the product of fantasy, the Norse warriors and the inhabitants of Scandinavia never used these weapons. Given their religious significance, the labrys have been considered as sacrificial or ceremonial weapons. However, their extremely sharp blade, among the best-sharpened weapons of the Bronze Age, and their weight, suggest that they were used in combat against armored enemies and not only in ceremonies and parades.
Ottoman Syrian Bedouin with rifle, pistol (kuber), holding a heavy steel war hammer (kulunk), curved and pointed on one side, widened on the other side in the form of an anvil. From:Les costumes populaires de la Turquie en 1873, 74 photographic plates by Pascal Sebah, published by the Imperial Ottoman Commission for the "Exposition Universelle" of Vienna in 1873. Shown with a similar Ottoman war hammer.
