A recent study on the geological and stratigraphic context of the L’Enclos site, located in Mainvilliers (in northern France, near Chartres), has shed new light on human occupation in the region during the Middle Paleolithic. The research has revealed that the lithic artifacts found at the site were preserved within sedimentary colluvium accumulated over a […]
Tools
Posted inStone Age Archaeology
The Fascinating History of a Decorated Mesolithic Antler Fragment: It Was an Axe, Then a Harpoon, and Finally an Offering Deposited in a River
A recent archaeological study in Sweden has revealed a fascinating discovery that illustrates the reuse of tools in the Mesolithic. It is a richly decorated antler fragment found at the Strandvägen site in the south-central region of the country, which initially formed part of a ceremonial axe and was later transformed into a harpoon before […]
Posted inStone Age Archaeology
A 65,000-Year-Old Neanderthal ‘Tar Factory’ That Produced Adhesive for Tools, Found in Gibraltar
An archaeological discovery in Gibraltar’s Vanguard Cave has revealed a unique combustion structure built by Neanderthals approximately 65,000 years ago. The study, recently published in the journal Quaternary Science Reviews, suggests that Neanderthals used this structure to produce tar from resinous plants, a material likely used as an adhesive in tool-making. The structure, described by […]
Posted inPrehistory
The Clacton Spear is the Oldest Known Wooden Tool
In 1911, an extraordinary archaeological discovery was made in the small coastal town of Clacton-on-Sea (Essex, England). Samuel Hazzledine Warren, an amateur prehistorian who had been searching for simple stone tools in a Paleolithic sediment, discovered what he initially thought was a piece of animal antler. But he soon realized it was a fragmented wooden […]
Posted inStone Age Archaeology
A Neolithic Copper Axe Found in Poland Suggests the Presence of Trypillia Settlements, the Culture that Burned its Villages
Recently found in Matcz, in the municipality of Horodło in the Lublin Voivodeship in Poland, a unique copper axe dating back to the 4th-3rd millennium BCE, has been identified as belonging to the Cucuteni culture (also known as Trypillia Culture), which flourished between 4500 and 3000 BCE in southeastern Europe. The discovery was made during […]
Posted inClassical Archaeology
Roman Ligula or “Toilet Spoon” Unearthed in Wales
A metal detectorist found a Roman silver “ligula” in the municipality of St. Nicholas and Bonvilston in Wales, commonly known as a “toilet spoon”. The discovery, made in June 2020, has now been declared a treasure by Welsh authorities, along with other items. Immediately after the discovery, Mark Lodwick, Coordinator of the Portable Antiquities Scheme […]
