Find Spot record MDO47078 - Acheulian handaxe, Affpuddle

Acheulian handaxe found in re-deposited material from road works on the West side of the road between Gallows Hill and the cross roads to the south. The handaxe was found in two piecies by Mr Burt in 1939 in an area of Chalk and small patches of High Terrace Gravel geology.

About 1939 Mr R E Burt of 11 Parkstone Road, Poole, found a flat angular hand axe of the final Acheulian period, during road widening operations on the West side of the road between Gallows Hill and the cross roads to the south (Area SY 843 908). (1)

"I found one portion lying on the surface of some mounds of loose soil which had been deposited there, on a flat part of the heath adjoining the road. I would imagine workmen had been widening the road, or altering the gradient at the approach to the brow of the hill from Bere Regis, and deposited the material in which the axe was contained…recent fracture probably by workman's pick. The site where I found both pieces is on the side of the road opposite to the present path leading to the Tumulus. I have the axe in my possession." (2)

From the directions contained in authority 2 the site where the hand axe was found has been surveyed at SY 8428 9092. The site is gravel covered and there were no surface finds. (3)

The axe is flat, symmetrical and square ended, and some 5.5 ins long. See illustration. (4)

<1> Rigg, J, Field Investigators Comments JR, F1 JR 22-JUL-52 (Unpublished document). SWX1255.

<2> R E Burt, 1952, Letter (R E Burt 26.7.52), Letter (R E Burt 26.7.52) (Unpublished document). SDO20089.

<3> Rigg, J, Field Investigators Comments JR, F2 JR 11-SEP-52 (Unpublished document). SWX1255.

<4> Farrar, R A H, 1952, Archaeological Fieldwork in Dorset in 1952. Proceedings of the Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society, 102, 74 (Article in serial). SWX1587.

<5> Ordnance Survey, Ordnance Survey Map 6in, 1963 (Map). SWX1540.

(SY 8428 9091) Palaeolithic Axe found (NAT)

<6> Roe, Derek A, 1968, A Gazetteer of British Lower and Middle Palaeolithic sites, 46, 8 (Monograph). SWX4454.

<7> Wymer, J, 1993, The Southern Rivers Palaeolithic Project: the Upper Thames Valley, the Kennet Valley and the Solent drainage system, 117 (Monograph). SWX4473.

<8> National Record of the Historic Environment (Digital archive). SDO14739.

Record last edited

Nov 13 2023 10:14AM