Fasces

Canvas 24 x 30 cm 

acrylic on canvas 

2024

The fasces consisted of a bundle of wooden rods enclosing an axe, held together by purple leather straps. Fasces were carried by lictors in front of magistrates. The rods, usually birch but sometimes elm, were symbolic of the "power to punish". The axe symbolised the "power over life and death" and the belts the "power to arrest". The fasces is therefore also called lictor bundle.

In iconography, the fasces are an attribute of personified justice,[4] which is why this symbol is affixed in the US Senate on either side of the president's seat. The fasces are also the symbol of unity, for example in marriage. Then it is worn by Amor.The fasces are also depicted on the coat of arms of the House of Wasa, kings of Sweden from 1523 to 1654.The symbol is also incorporated in the flag of the Brooklyn district of New York. The flag and seal of the Brooklyn district show a woman in a cloak holding the fasces. In America, the fasces is seen as a Republican symbol, among other things. Sold