Gray's Inn Lane Hand Axe facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Gray's Inn Lane Hand Axe |
|
|---|---|
A pointed flint hand axe from Gray's Inn Lane, London
|
|
| Material | Flint |
| Size | 165 mm (6 in) long |
| Created | 350,000 years ago |
| Discovered | Gray's Inn Lane, London |
| Present location | British Museum, London |
The Gray's Inn Lane Hand Axe is an ancient stone tool. It's a special type of hand axe made from flint, a very hard stone. This axe was found deep in the ground in Gray's Inn Lane, London, England. An early archaeologist named John Conyers discovered it in 1679. Today, you can see it at the British Museum.
This hand axe is about 350,000 years old! It comes from a time called the Lower Paleolithic period. This was a very early part of the Stone Age, when humans first started making tools. The axe is important because it helped people understand how old human history really is.
Discovering the Ancient Hand Axe
How the Axe Was Found
In 1679, a man named John Conyers was helping with an excavation. They were digging in gravel near Gray's Inn Lane in London. During this dig, they found some very large bones. People thought these bones belonged to an elephant. Later, experts realized they were from a mammoth or a similar ancient elephant.
Right near these huge bones, Conyers found the pointed flint hand axe. At that time, most people believed humans had only been on Earth for a short time. They also thought stone tools were made by people who didn't know how to work with metal.
Understanding Its True Age
John Conyers was the first person to say that the axe was made by humans. After Conyers passed away, another person named John Bagford wrote about the discovery in 1715. Bagford disagreed with the idea that the bones and axe came from the time of Noah's flood. Instead, he thought they were from the Roman period, during the time of Emperor Claudius. However, Bagford did agree that the hand axe was made by people.
The hand axe, along with other items from Conyers' collection, later became part of Sir Hans Sloane's collection. Sir Hans Sloane's collection was one of the first big collections that helped start the British Museum.
Today, experts at the British Museum believe the hand axe is about 350,000 years old. During that time, the climate in Britain was similar to today's weather. Large elephants lived there during a period of the Ice age. You can see the Gray's Inn Lane Hand Axe in the "Enlightenment Gallery" at the British Museum. This gallery is inside the King's Library section of the museum.
See also
- Saltley handaxe in Birmingham
