Discovery Centre Finds - Flint arrowhead

CR1852 From Store to Store

Archive Blog post no. 1

This almost complete ‘leaf-shaped’ flint arrowhead was found at the Buckles site, Frocester, in 1983. It is a fine example of the ‘ogival’ form of leaf-shaped arrowhead, characterised by a broader, rounded base and a short or longer point. Both faces have been made by ‘pressure flaking’, where small flakes were removed by application of gradual pressure from a special tool or retoucheur, probably made of antler or bone.

Leaf-shaped arrowheads date to the Early Neolithic in Britain, from c. 4000 to 3500 BC. This period, also known as the New Stone Age, coincided with the introduction of farming to Britain as well as new technologies such as the use of pottery and practices such as the construction of monuments including long barrows and causewayed enclosures.

The large numbers of arrowheads known from this period suggest that hunting remained an important activity. There is some evidence also for inter-personal violence using bows from sites such as Crickley Hill, Gloucestershire. Here, over 400 leaf-shaped arrowheads were found in the area of the causewayed enclosure, some of the earliest evidence for organised warfare from Britain.