Medieval Copper-alloy Mace-heads from England, Scotland and Wales
Adam Daubney
Copper-alloy knopped mace-heads are relatively
uncommon finds in England, Wales and Scotland. This
paper concerns the 29 examples known to the author at
the time of writing (see catalogue): 16 of which were
previously listed by Geake (2005: 334-37). Thirteen of
these have been recorded through the Portable Antiquities
Scheme (PAS). Three further ones have been discovered
through excavation, which may be residual finds. No.28
from Perth, Perthshire, was found in the floor of a c.14thcentury bakery (Holdsworth 1987), No. 25, from
Dryslwyn Castle, Carmarthenshire, was found deep
within the fill of a latrine pit dated to 1250-60 (Jessop,
forthcoming) and No. 11 came from a waterfront
excavation in the City of London (there is no full
publication of the site sequence).
It is perhaps correct to stress that some degree of caution
needs to be exercised when using the term ‘mace-head’,
as the word has military, political and ecclesiastical
connotations. It is the writer’s opinion that although
many of the copper-alloy knopped varieties were used in
combat, some of these are likely to have had an
ecclesiastical function. The distinction between the two
classes is not clear at present and it is possible that some
maces had dual purposes. Iron knopped maces, known
from Britain and the continent are thought to have been
used exclusively in combat. A detailed study of the iron
examples is beyond the scope of this paper.
Fig. 1. Mace-head a) without shaft (No. 2); height 24mm (drawing
D. Watt) and b) with shaft (No. 20); height 52mm.
The distribution of the mace-heads is very much centred
on the east of England, with Lincolnshire having
produced a relatively large quantity. The distribution map
(Fig. 2) also shows that a significant number of maces are
found in coastal counties, at inlet locations and along
major waterways. Although the dataset is few in number
and obvious biases can be thought of, it seems likely that
this distribution is representative.
Knopped mace-heads are better known in Ireland,
Scandinavia, and continental north-eastern Europe, where
many examples are decorated with moulded motifs,
openwork shafts and in some cases silvering (Fig. 3). The
Irish and European knopped copper-alloy mace-heads
have been the focus of attention of a number of scholars,
in particular Halpin (1988: 168-200) and Kirpichnikov
(1966: 47-57). According to Kirpichnikov, copper-alloy
knopped mace-heads developed in north eastern Europe,
perhaps centred on Kiev in the 9th century. The earliest
forms of mace found in the Baltic area are undecorated
and have no integral shaft. It seems that decorated
examples did not appear until the 12th century. The peak
in usage occurs between the 11th and 14th centuries on
the continent, with broad 13th- and 14th- century dating
for those from the British Isles.
The knopped mace-head is simply a cast, hollow cylinder
of copper alloy, sometimes leaded,{1} and usually with
three rows of pyramidal or half-pyramidal knops. The
only clear divisions within the knopped group are those
with integral shafts and those without (Fig.1). Both
varieties were mounted on long wooden staves, as
evidenced by many examples retaining wood within their
sockets. Those with integral shafts were secured by an
iron nail through a small hole at the bottom of the socket,
and those without may well have been secured by an iron
nail through the top of the socket. Iron corrosion has been
noted around the socket on a number of mace-heads,
notably No. 6 from Fiskerton, Lincolnshire. Indeed, one
unprovenanced iron knopped mace-head (seen by the
author on the internet) is known with an iron nail still
through the socket.
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Fig. 2: Distribution of copper-alloy mace-heads in Great Britain and Ireland (Irish finds cf. Halpin 1988: 192, fig. 11).
Fig. 3: Decorated copper-alloy mace-heads from a) the Baltic and b) Denmark; heights 135mm and 79mm (Adam Daubney).
Barshalder cemetery contained small, ornate axes that
were interpreted as being ceremonial rather than martial,
symbolically linking the owner to armed conflict. This
interpretation is supported by the evidence from one
grave where the length of the haft seems to have been too
long for practical use (ibid.: 65). The maces from the
Barshalder cemetery were found at the feet of the
deceased, with the hafts originally orientated towards
their heads (ibid.: 65 and 67). Rundkvist (2003: 67)
suggested that because the mace-heads were set further
from the head of the deceased than the axes, the hafts of
the former may have been longer. This is not in keeping
The writer knows of no knopped mace-heads from France
or southern Europe; instead, these areas tend to produce
iron-flanged mace-heads, which are firmly at home in a
military context. There are notable concentrations of
early decorative and plain knopped mace-heads in
Scandinavia, in particular Denmark and Gotland,
Sweden. Two maces were found in probable Christian
graves dated to c. 1000-1100 AD at a cemetery site in
Barshalder, Gotland (Rundkvist 2003: 67 - graves nos.
Bhr 1962:14:1 and Bhr 1963:01), and a third mace is
documented from a grave at Hemse Annexhemman, also
on Gotland (ibid.: 67). Other burials within the
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the Eastern Church. Perhaps the same can also be
suggested for the British maces.
with contemporary illustrations of maces used in battle,
which were mounted on short staves. A small mace-head
on a long shaft does not readily lend itself to combat,
whether used for fighting on foot or on horseback. The
absence of other components within the graves shows
that there were no metal bindings, studs or other
decorative elements on the shafts. In the 11th and 12th
centuries religion on Gotland was significantly influenced
by the eastern Christianity of Russia (Lagerlöf 1999).
Staecker (1997: 77-81) has suggested that the early
Christian graves containing jewellery and dress fittings
found in churchyards on the island and at Leksand in
Dalecarlia, and even those with pottery at Grodby on
Bornholm (Denmark), might be seen as indicators of
historically undocumented missionary work on the part of
Some of the Scandinavian mace-heads are extremely
elaborate and were clearly not intended to be employed in
physical warfare. A few have silver decoration and others
are decoratively moulded, occasionally as openwork. One
in Finland shows a figure, possibly a saint, holding a
book that is probably a bible, standing beneath an arch
which may represent a church or monastery (Fig. 4),
which suggests an ecclesiastical association. Further
possible evidence for the knopped mace being an item
employed in spiritual, rather than physical warfare is seen
in a stone sculpture of a figure who holds one in his right
hand at the 12th- or 13th-century church at Horsne,
Gotland (Fig. 5).
Fig. 4: Mace-head from Finland with moulded arcade and (possible) praying figure (National Museum of Finland).
Fig. 5: Figure holding mace at Horsne church, Gotland (Adam Daubney).
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Medieval Copper-alloy Mace-heads from England, Scotland and Wales
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Fig. 6. Openwork mace-head from Athenry, Galway. Height 101mm (Andrew Halpin).
The movement of mace-heads (or more accurately those
who were carrying them) turns to Ireland, which has
produced a sizeable collection of the knopped variety. In
his detailed study Halpin (1988) lists 19 examples. Many
of these are decorative, including one from Athenry,
Galway, with an openwork socket formed of four pillars
(ibid.: 182, fig. 1 and pls. 2 and 3; Fig. 6), which brings
to mind the arch on the Finnish example. The openwork
socket and obvious high quality suggest non-military
useage for this particular item. On the other hand, Halpin
(ibid.: 174) notes that many of the Irish maces have
damaged, down-turned prongs that could well be the
result of service in battle. Similar traits are also seen on
the English, Scottish and Welsh maces, particularly on
the most prominent upper and middle rows of prongs.
Although damage to the upper prongs could have been
caused by general wear, damage to the middle row
implies that the maces were swung horizontally, which in
turn suggests aggressive intent.
copper (Holdsworth 1987: 125, no. 29), however in the
light of the silver on continental examples it is more
likely to represent surface coating.
The findspots of maces found at Soutra, Midlothian and
Perth, Perthshire maces (Nos. 26 and 28) may also hint at
ecclesiastical associations. The Perth mace-head was
discovered at a location known as ‘Kirk Close’ (Church
Close) and Soutra was the site of a large and important
hospice founded in 1164 by King Malcolm IV, which
includes an Augustinian church (the site lies just off Dere
Street, which remained the only major highway between
England and the north until the 18th century and it was
the principal pilgrim route to St Andrews across the
Lammermuir Hills.{2}
It seems appropriate to make a tentative link between the
undecorated and decorated knopped mace-head and a
group of smaller, openwork copper-alloy staff fittings
which are gradually becoming better known in England
(Fig. 7). These hollow fittings were originally described
as sword pommels (Ward Perkins 1940: 23, fig. 2, nos. 1
and 2) but they have more recently been re-identified as
cross-staff bases by Simon Bailey (1994: 171-75). Ten of
these fittings have been recorded through the PAS to
date. {2}
It may be significant that England and Wales are yet to
produce a decorated copper-alloy knopped mace-head.
Scotland has some: No. 27 from Millsteads Farm,
Canonbie, Dumfries and Galloway is decorated with a
moulded fleur-de-lis on the shaft and No. 28 from Perth,
Perthshire has traces of corroded silver in some areas.
This was originally thought to be contamination of the
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Adam Daubney
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Fig. 7: Cross-staff fitting from Sharnbrook, Bedfordshire (BH-B64636); height: 45mm (Garth Denning).
They are of two main types: the first group is discoid and
the second globular. Both groups are socketed and were
secured to a wooden staff by means of a small nail at the
top of the socket.
from the continent, it would appear that, despite the
similarities, the openwork fittings are English artefacts
that developed independently from, and indeed earlier
than the knopped mace-head.
Although these cross-staff fittings are smaller in size,
many of them are strikingly similar in basic forrn to the
undecorated knopped mace-heads, often including three
rows of globular knops similar to the arrangement of
pyramidal and half-pyramidal knops seen on undecorated
British mace-heads. If the openwork cross-staff fittings
did indeed follow the form of undecorated mace-heads,
then the latter must be earlier in date or at least
contemporary with the openwork fittings. This does,
however, not appear to be the trend currently seen in the
excavated examples. Two cross-staff fittings excavated at
Dublin and Canterbury, Kent were dated to the mid- and
late-11th century respectively (ibid.: 171-75), whereas the
two stratified knopped mace-heads noted above are dated
to the mid 13th century. The undecorated mace-heads
from Britain relate to Kirpichnikov’s Group III and IV
from the Baltic region, which he dates between the 12th
century and the first half of the 13th century (1966: 49).
From this evidence and also the lack of openwork fittings
The date at which the knopped copper-alloy mace-heads
entered England is still very much open to debate and
awaits new finds with reliable close dating. At present it
seems likely to have been in the later 12th century at the
earliest. Some examples may be local products based on
Scandinavian or north-eastern European types. It is clear
that the majority of copper-alloy knopped mace-heads
were manufactured as weapons of war, particularly larger
ones that are heavily leaded and have knops that have
fractured or become down-turned through the application
of considerable force. The available evidence does point
to some of them having a non-martial function, in which
case they may have been used as ecclesiastical staff
terminals. If the knopped mace-head evolved quickly
from a weapon into an object employed as a ceremonial
or ecclesiastical staff fitting, then it might be possible to
see remnants of 12th- and 13th-century maces in later
ecclesiastical material. Some 15th-century candlesticks
and processional crosses have knopped collars that are
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Medieval Copper-alloy Mace-heads from England, Scotland and Wales
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remarkably similar to the mace-heads, with common
details such as three rows of pyramidal knops and integral
shafts extending below but not at the tops, along with
various other decorative elements (Oman 1962: 195, pls.
15-16 and 18). The staffs on the 12th- and13th-century
maces are however unlikely to have continued up beyond
the head, as the knops on later processional crosses did.
As noted above, iron corrosion on several sockets
indicates the use of nails as a method of securing the
heads to the shafts, and some of the mace-heads have
closed tops, particularly Danish examples. Finally the
mace-heads from the graves in Gotland indicate that they
formed the terminal for the shaft. This evidence does not
necessarily go against the knops on processional cross
developing from them.
The mace-like knopped collars on the processional
crosses may well point back down the evolutionary line
of metalwork motifs, ultimately to the mace-head.
Depending on the closeness of this connection, the maces
are of interest not only to finds specialists, but potentially
to those who study the movement of missionaries and the
spread of the gospel throughout medieval Europe as well.
Catalogue of copper-alloy knopped mace-heads from England, Wales and Scotland:
No.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
Findspot
Wicken, Cambridgeshire.
Stroud, Gloucestershire.
Ramsgate, Kent.
Canterbury, Kent.
Edlington, Lincolnshire.
Fiskerton, Lincolnshire.
North Kelsey, Lincolnshire.
Sleaford area, Lincolnshire.
Thonock, Lincolnshire.
probably Lincolnshire.
78 Upper Thames Street, City of London.
12
13
14
15
16
Burgh and Tuttington, Norfolk.
Burgh with Tuttingham, Norfolk.
Saham Toney, Norfolk.
Coddington area, Nottinghamshire.
possibly Ipswich, Suffolk.
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
Lidgate, Suffolk.
Tunstall, Suffolk.
Warwickshire.
Great Bedwin, Wiltshire.
possibly Swindon, Wiltshire.
Marr, Doncaster, South Yorkshire.
Tickhill, Yorkshire.
‘A DMV site in Northamptonshire’.
Dryslwyn, Carmarthenshire.
Soutra, Midlothian.
Millsteads Farm, Canonbie, Dumfries and
Galloway.
Kirk Close, Perth, Perthshire.
Unprovenanced, presumably UK.
28
29
Reference
Anon 1850: 302.
Anon 1861: 163.
LIN-7778D6
LIN-772E80
LIN-1EC113
LIN-871975; Geake 2005: 336, fig. 5b.
LIN-6DD211.
LIN-9CB1B8; Daubney 2005: 336, fig. 5a.
NLM2851.
For sale on internet.
Museum of London archive:
TEX88 acc. no. <7286>
NMS-AE5497.
Norfolk HER: No. 33592.
Norfolk HER: 34101.
LIN-9570B5.
Anonymous, The Searcher Magazine, November
2002, 18.
Anon 1849: 181; Evans 1881: 271.
SF3643.
BERK-7DF537.
Anon 1849: 411; Evans 1881: 271.
For sale on internet 2006.
SWYOR-F30727.
LIN-1A5260.
For sale on internet 2006.
Jessop, forthcoming.
Treasure: 2005/11
Dumfries
Museum
accession
number:
DUMFM:1969.18 (Caldwell 1981: 306-7).
Holdsworth 1987: 44-45.
ESS-897423.
Wickham Bishops Area, Essex (SUSS-3C8EA4); Isle of
Axholme area, North Lincolnshire (NLM2712); Catton
Hall, Staffordshire (PAS: BUC-5F9404); Shenstone,
Staffordshire (WMID-20EEE6); Finningham area,
Suffolk (SF-E1DB04); Great Barton area, Suffolk (SFA69D93); Fillongley, Warwickshire (WAW-8E2FA3).
Endnotes
{1} X-ray fluorescence analysis of the Millsteads Farm,
Canonbie mace-head showed the occurrence of copper,
lead and tin (Holdsworth 1987, 125). The heavy mass of
many of the other maces seen by the author also suggests
the addition of lead, although none has been scientifically
analysed at the time of writing. No. 11 weighs 521g.
{2} Sharnbrook area, Bedfordshire (BH-B64636);
Billington area, Buckinghamshire (BUC-69D596);
Tarrant Hinton area, Dorset (SOMDOR-AF3CC7);
Acknowledgements
I am extremely grateful to the Finds Liaison Officers
involved in recording mace-heads, and to Helen Geake
199
Adam Daubney
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Geake, H. 2005, ‘Medieval Britain and Ireland, 2004:
Portable Antiquities Scheme’, Medieval Archaeology
49, 334-37.
Halpin, A. 1988, ‘Irish Medieval Bronze Maceheads’, in
MacNiocaill, G. and Wallace, P. F. (eds.), Keimelia.
Studies in medieval archaeology and history in
memory of Tom Delaney (Galway University Press,
Galway), 168-92.
Holdsworth, P. 1987, Excavations in the Medieval Burgh
of Perth 1979-1981. Society of Antiquaries of
Scotland Monograph 5 (Society of Antiquaries of
Scotland, Edinburgh).
Jessop, O. 2007, ‘Weapons’, in Caple, C. (ed.), Dryslwyn
Castle Excavations 1980-1995. Society for Medieval
Archaeology Monographs 26 (Manley Publishing,
Leeds).
Kirpichnikov, A. N. 1966. ‘Drevnerusskoe oruzhie. Vyp.
II: Kopia, sulitsy, boevyetopory, bulavy, kisteni, IXXIII vv’, Arkheologiia SSSR. Svod
Arkheologicheskikh Istochnikov (Nauka, Leningrad).
Lagerlöf, E. 1999. Gotland och Bysans. Bysantinskt
inflytande på den Gotländska kyrkokonsten under
medeltiden (Ödins Förlag, Visby).
Oman, C. 1962, ‘English medieval base metal church
plate’, Archaeological Journal 119, 195-207.
Rundkvist, M. 2003, Barshalder 2, Studies of Late Iron
Age Gotland (University of Stockholm, Stockholm).
Staecker, J. 1997, ‘Searching for the unknown: Gotland’s
churchyards from a gender and missionary
perspective’, Lund Archaeological Review 1, 77-81.
Ward Perkins, J. B. 1940, London Museum Medieval
Catalogue (HMSO, London).
(PAS), Andy Halpin (National Museum of Ireland) and
Jenny Shiels (National Museums of Scotland) for their
assistance and encouragement. Thanks also to Geoff
Egan (PAS) for alerting me to the TEX88 mace-head and
for sharing his thoughts and comments regarding these
finds with me, to Anne Pedersen (National Museum of
Denmark) for her help with the maces in the Danish and
Finnish National Museums, and to Shawn Caza
(independent researcher) for bringing the Kirpichnikov
article to my attention. Much gratitude is expressed to the
finders who reported their mace-heads.
Bibliography
Anon. 1849, ‘Proceedings at meetings of the
Archaeological Institute’, Archaeological Journal 6,
175-200 and 395-416.
Anon. 1850, ‘Proceedings at meetings of the
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295-302.
Anon. 1861, ‘Proceedings at meetings of the
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147-92.
Anon. 2002, ‘The identification and valuation desk’, The
Searcher (November) 207, 18.
Bailey, S. 1994, ‘Two copper-alloy cross-staff heads
from Warwickshire,’ Medieval Archaeology 38, 17175.
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