It's also based on the fasces, the origin of the term Fascist.
Obviously it differs in not having an axe head but is otherwise intentionally similar. Also, the current mace PREDATES 20th century fascism as it began use in 1841 (created by New York silversmith William Adams, at a cost of $400, equivalent to $12,000 in 2023)
"The fasces frequently occurs as a charge in heraldry: it is present on the reverse of the U.S. Mercury dime coin, behind the podium in the United States House of Representatives, and in the Seal of the U.S. Senate; and it was the origin of the name of the National Fascist Party in Italy (from which the term fascism is derived)"
In one of its first resolutions, the U.S. House of Representatives of the 1st Federal Congress (April 14, 1789) established the Office of the Sergeant at Arms. The resolution stated "a proper symbol of office shall be provided for the Sergeant at Arms, of such form and device as the Speaker shall direct." The first Speaker of the House, Frederick Muhlenberg of Pennsylvania, approved the mace as the proper symbol of the Sergeant at Arms in carrying out the duties of this office. The first mace was destroyed when the Capitol Building was burned on August 24, 1814, during the War of 1812. A simple wooden mace was used in the interim.
The current mace has been in use since December 29, 1841 and was created by New York silversmith William Adams, at a cost of $400, equivalent to $12,000 in 2023.
During the January 6, 2021 attack attempting to prevent Congress from certifying the 2020 presidential election, Joyce Hamlett, the Keeper of the Mace, rushed it off the floor of the House chamber to protect it from intruders...
In accordance with the House Rules, on the rare occasion that a member becomes unruly, the Sergeant at Arms, upon order of the Speaker, lifts the mace from its pedestal and presents it before the offenders, thereby restoring order.
There have been at least six instances where the Mace was used to quell disorder. The first known usage of the original mace occurred at the Congress Hall in Philadelphia on January 30, 1798, during a fight between Matthew Lyon of Vermont and Roger Griswold of Connecticut, after which Lyon faced an unsuccessful expulsion vote...
House records indicate that the mace was last used to restore order during World War I when Representative J. Thomas (Cotton Tom) Heflin of Alabama suggested that some of his colleagues had been unpatriotic in voting against a resolution to enter the war.
A threat to present the mace was made on July 29, 1994, when Rep. Maxine Waters declined to stop speaking. The Speaker Pro Tempore, Rep. Carrie Meek, threatened "to present the mace". Waters left the floor shortly thereafter, and Meek said that she had been about to order the Sergeant at Arms to present it.
TLDR: No, the Mace of the United States House of Representatives has never been used to physically hit anyone.
TitanofBravos on October 17th, 2025 at 13:43 UTC »
That’s a fasces, they date back to Rome, and is the root of where the word fascist
Manicplea on October 17th, 2025 at 13:49 UTC »
It's also based on the fasces, the origin of the term Fascist.
Obviously it differs in not having an axe head but is otherwise intentionally similar. Also, the current mace PREDATES 20th century fascism as it began use in 1841 (created by New York silversmith William Adams, at a cost of $400, equivalent to $12,000 in 2023)
"The fasces frequently occurs as a charge in heraldry: it is present on the reverse of the U.S. Mercury dime coin, behind the podium in the United States House of Representatives, and in the Seal of the U.S. Senate; and it was the origin of the name of the National Fascist Party in Italy (from which the term fascism is derived)"
Spartan2470 on October 17th, 2025 at 14:29 UTC »
Here is a much higher-quality version (7,545 × 10,260 pixels, 11 MB) and less-cropped version of this image. Here is the source.
To get an idea of the size, here is a picture of someone holding it.
According to here:
TLDR: No, the Mace of the United States House of Representatives has never been used to physically hit anyone.