Northwestern Europe, Southeast England, Middlesex, Lower Paleolithic, Acheulean period, ca. 400,000 to 250,000 years ago. A superb flint bifacial hand axe was fashioned by Homo erectus (H. heidelbergensis), the first humans to occupy Europe. It dates back to the Lower Paleolithic Period, made in the Acheulian Tradition, and was the predominant tool technology of the Homo erectus people in Europe from 1 million years ago to possibly as recent as 130,000 years ago. Fine quality English Lower Paleolithic hand axes like this, are legendary among collectors and are harder to find since many were found long ago in the early 20th century and many in the 19th century when open gravel pits were commonly dug during the industrial age of England. Most of the finest known European hand axes in major museums hail from these former English gravel pits. English Lower Paleolithic hand axes often move from one private collection to the next as many sites are now destroyed, built over or protected, and fine specimens such as this axe rarely appear on the market. Size: 7.25" L x 3.75" W (18.4 cm x 9.5 cm)

The naturally glossy burial patina and intense golden hue highlight the exceptional flaking. This hand axe features an ingenious, ergonomic grip design, made by extensive flaking and forethought to achieve an ambidextrous design that required a great deal of intelligence and skill to execute. The entire hand axe shows excellent and masterful flaking, a prize of a highly skilled Homo erectus primitive human who once lived in what is now present-day England! Due to the size and heft, it is highly probable this hand axe was used to smash open major bones of all the Ice Age large game animals of the day such as mammoth, bison, horse, and rhino.

Provenance: ex-private German collection, formed in the 1970s

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#175611

Intact with no repair or restoration. Heavy prehistoric patina and mineral deposits.