Palaeolithic Hand Axe
Object
Flint tool
Production date
328000bc=300000bc
Object number
1991.632
Physical Description
Palaeolithic flint hand axe, pear shaped, cream, yellow and grey.
Object history
Handaxes were the Old Stone Age version of the Swiss Army knife. By studying marks left on the surface of stone axes, archaeologists can tell they had multiple uses, including butchering and skinning animals, cutting wood and even digging.
Handaxes are shaped out of a larger piece of stone. Flakes are removed by hitting it against another stone or piece of antler (known as ‘knapping’). To create these elegant, symmetrical shapes would require forward planning and great technical skill.
Rather than being attached to a handle, they were handheld. Handaxes are the most frequently found item from the Old Stone Age, and have become iconic of the time period.
This stone tool was not made by a modern human, but members of a different species – the Neanderthals.
Handaxes are shaped out of a larger piece of stone. Flakes are removed by hitting it against another stone or piece of antler (known as ‘knapping’). To create these elegant, symmetrical shapes would require forward planning and great technical skill.
Rather than being attached to a handle, they were handheld. Handaxes are the most frequently found item from the Old Stone Age, and have become iconic of the time period.
This stone tool was not made by a modern human, but members of a different species – the Neanderthals.
Associated Person
Joseph Exhall Greenhill (Archaeologist)
Associated Place
Dimension
Width (Maximum): 100mm
height (Whole): 150mm
height (Whole): 150mm
On display?
No