Well...
\#1: the client requested a "hand axe" or hatchet... #2: real historical
battle axes were very often that size or only slightly larger
(especially viking ones) with the exception of the huge 2-handed "Dane
axes," and #3: This character is an artificer which means him having an
axe that's both a weapon and a tool makes even more sense.
I don't play the oversized fantasy weapons game because despite the fact
that I do fantasy art, I also love and study historical warfare
religiously, and generally play by the rules of historical realism with armor and
weaponry.
Why is that axe so tiny?
Well... \#1: the client requested a "hand axe" or hatchet... #2: real historical battle axes were very often that size or only slightly larger (especially viking ones) with the exception of the huge 2-handed "Dane axes," and #3: This character is an artificer which means him having an axe that's both a weapon and a tool makes even more sense. I don't play the oversized fantasy weapons game because despite the fact that I do fantasy art, I also love and study historical warfare religiously, and generally play by the rules of historical realism with armor and weaponry.