Maces were wielded on Iranian battlefields since pre-Islamic times; however, this nineteenth-century example was not intended for combat. Rather, with its elegant gilding and fanged demon head, this mace may have been used ceremonially in dervish processions or initiation rites, or as a prop in performances, including Shi‘ite religious dramas and staged recitations of the Shahnama, the Iranian national epic, whose heroes are often described as carrying emblematic maces.