Elisha and the iron axe

One of the reasons I'm fascinated with the Elijah/Elisha cycle of stories is the evidences of change from the bronze to iron age. The story of a worker losing the axe head is a great example. It would be, in today's terms, like wrecking the borrowed tractor. The replacement expense would be exorbitant. The miracle takes on more significance when we realize what an axe head means to the people involved. If I lose an axe I go down and buy one at the local store, but for the people in that story.... it's another multitude of a disaster.