Bronze double-ax head

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The double axe played a central role in Minoan society and religion. Full-size versions were not only functional tools but also ceremonial objects that were displayed or dedicated in sanctuaries and graves. Miniature examples likewise served as votive offerings. Those with pierced handles could be worn as pendants or amulets. Although the religious function and meaning of the double axe is not clear, Minoan seals and frescoes often show it in scenes depicting rituals and in connection with a female deity. The design also appears as an individual sign on seals and pottery, as a mason’s mark on stone blocks, and in the Minoan scripts. The size and insubstantial construction of this example makes it likely that it was a dedication.

Greek and Roman Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Museum's collection of Greek and Roman art comprises more than thirty thousand works ranging in date from the Neolithic period (ca. 4500 B.C.) to the time of the Roman emperor Constantine's conversion to Christianity in A.D. 312. It includes the art of many cultures and is among the most comprehensive in North America. The geographic regions represented are Greece and Italy, but not as delimited by modern political frontiers: Greek colonies were established around the Mediterranean basin and on the shores of the Black Sea, and Cyprus became increasingly Hellenized. For Roman art, the geographical limits coincide with the expansion of the Roman Empire. The department also exhibits the art of prehistoric Greece (Helladic, Cycladic, and Minoan) and pre-Roman art of Italic peoples, notably the Etruscans.

Metropolitan Museum of Art