Object of the month: Arjeplogsyxan

Did you know that there is an axe head known as the Arjeplog axe? Just over 1000 years ago, someone left or lost their axe at Säjddetjålbme/Stensund east of Arjeplog. It was not found again until 1957 in connection with an archaeological survey, and is now kept at the National History Museum in Stockholm.

At the time when the axe was left or dropped, the people of Arjeplog lived on hunting and fishing. Hunting was mainly focused on wild reindeer and many extensive trapping systems were established at the end of the Iron Age in the mountain regions. But fish also formed an important part of the diet. And perhaps it was fishing that attracted the axe's former owners to this particular area around Lake Gáhkal (Kakel) - still known today as a lake rich in fish.

The axe with its peculiar shapes became popular to make copies of, and blacksmiths from Norrbotten and all the way down to Skåne have forged axe heads based on the Arjeplog axe. The axe in the picture is a copy that is in the Silvermuseet's collections.