Royal Institution of Cornwall, Anna Tyacke, 2009-06-07 00:48:18
Title
Neolithic greenstone axe roughout (plan)
Description
English: Incomplete greenstone or metadolerite axe roughout, which has been petrologically analysed by Dr. Roger Taylor as part of the Clodgy Moor Project. The roughout is a weathered cobble in the basic shape of a tear-shaped axe in plan, and is lozenge-shaped in profile and in section. There is a concentric groove that carries on around the width of the axe at an oblique angle, which was probably formed by wear if it was suspended as a weight. But many similar examples are turning up from the same field which suggests a possible local source or outcrop for this rock type. A chip of the butt end has been knocked off by the plough, revealing a dark black micaceous interior. The greenstone is typical of that found in the west of Cornwall from known outcrops, such as the Gwavas quarry, and contains pale felspars and dark amphibole inclusions (Dr. Roger Taylor pers comm - see notes below). A similar example has been excavated from the Neolithic settlement at Carn Brea and is illustrated in Mercer (1981) on page 155, Fig.64, No.S5.
Depicted place
(County of findspot) Cornwall
Date
between 4500 BC and 2300 BC
Accession number
FindID: 258401 Old ref: CORN-47E2F1 Filename: June09finz 009.jpg
Credit line
The Portable Antiquities Scheme (PAS) is a voluntary programme run by the United Kingdom government to record the increasing numbers of small finds of archaeological interest found by members of the public. The scheme started in 1997 and now covers most of England and Wales. Finds are published at https://finds.org.uk
Attribution: The Portable Antiquities Scheme/ The Trustees of the British Museum
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