German 16thC Axe for comment

[Matchlock]

Originally Posted by M ELEY

I've seen this type of decorative work and bone inlay of European crossbows ranging from 16th-19th century. It seems to me to be a legitimate older piece probably of the time period suggested at the start of this thread-
You may want to take a look online for some of the wood decorations on crossbows of the period...

BTW- An absolutely spectacular piece, Cornelis. Congrats!!!

Absolutely correct, Marc,

These are decorative symbols widely used by craftsmen on either metal or wooden objects from at least the 15th thru the 18thc., and so of course did the 19th c. art revival!

Thank you!

Best,
Michael