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fint tool find

• Message 1. 

  Posted by darlinsdog (U13901681) on Saturday, 4th April 2009

  can anyone help me , i have just found a flint tool in my garden in nottingham, it is round about 4 to 5 inches , each side has been worked or chipped to an edge , fits into the hand perfectly .. should i report the find, where can i find information on its age and use etc , thankyou

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• Message 2

  , in reply to message 1.

  Posted by TwinProbe (U4077936) on Saturday, 4th April 2009

  Hi darlinsdog,
  
  Yes, definitely report the flint tool, even though it is a surface find. Start by taking a series of photos (with something to provide scale like a ruler or a 50p piece). Also calculate an OS grid reference for your garden as accurately as you can from the local OS map.
  
  Armed with this information you could call at your local museum (is there a Castle Museum in Nottingham?) or email the Historic Environment Record for Nottinghamshire (previously Sites and Monuments Record) which seems to be at:
  
  
  
  The best source of information would be someone familiar with what has been found locally already. The flint must have come from an area of chalk and thus must have travelled some way to reach your garden. I'm not a lithics enthusiast myself but it sounds like a scraper. Its date might be anything from the Palaeolithic to the Bronze Age, and there are many Victorian fakes so you need an expert!
  
  Best wishes,
  
  TP

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• Message 3

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  Posted by darlinsdog (U13901681) on Saturday, 4th April 2009

  thankyou will do that . the flint was found about a foot and a half down where the soil becomes sandy ..so is is still classed as surface ?

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• Message 4

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  Posted by TwinProbe (U4077936) on Saturday, 4th April 2009

  Strictly speaking not the surface then.
  
  The significance is whether a find is in the topsoil and will (together with everything else) have been frequently disturbed by digging, ploughing, building etc.
  
  The alternative is that it was below the topsoil and may be in a context that exists in stratigraphic relationship with younger and older material.
  
  In some urban situations, for example, the topsoil has Victorian and modern material but below are recognisable medieval, early medieval and Roman 'layers'.
  
  If you get any further information do please post it here.
  
  TP

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• Message 5

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  Posted by darlinsdog (U13901681) on Monday, 6th April 2009

  did some more digging ... the flint tool was found like i said about 18 inches down ... this soil very different it is a mixure of sand and clay after a couple of spade fulls i found a small bone and some dark charcoaly patches... i have contacted a friend who is an archaelogist .. waiting for a reply ... so will keep you informed, p.s i wont do any more digging until my friend has a look

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• Message 6

  , in reply to message 5.

  Posted by TwinProbe (U4077936) on Monday, 6th April 2009

  Hi darlinsdog,
  
  This is getting exciting. Do you know anything about the more recent history of your garden? When were the houses built? Was the garden formed from farmland or were there earlier structures on site?
  
  Thanks for keeping us informed,
  
  TP

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• Message 7

  , in reply to message 6.

  Posted by darlinsdog (U13901681) on Tuesday, 7th April 2009

  the house was built 1n 1926 and until then it was farmland , its on the side of a hill so there was quite a bit of digging into the hill to place the building , i assume the clay layer is the original bed

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