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MHG14362 - Axe, Craggie

Summary

The findspot of a polished flint axehead which is on display in Inverness Museum.

Type and Period (1)

Protected Status

Full Description

"A fine axehead of greyish/beige mottled flint, finely polished with a few deeper flake scars. The sides have narrow, flat bevels. The axehead was found in a row of stones cleared from the field by a destoner. No context was recorded or was visible at the time of the site visit. No other objects are recorded from this area. " (HRA:RBG:23.5.1989). <1>
Information from ARCH Community Timeline Project: Auldearn:
Axehead is on display in Inverness Museum.

"Slender, butt thin, broad and rounded, blade shallow, sides gently convergent and squared off; cross section a truncated, slightly angular ellipse. Polished all over, with polishing striations visible and a few remaining flake scars. Slight damage to blade, butt and surface, ancient in all but one case. …Very high-quality flint, almost certainly imported….This object belongs to a small, widely scattered but distinctive group of all-over-polished flint axeheads. These are distinguished not only by their size (most are over 200mm long, some - including Craggie - considerably more), but also by their shape (slender, tapering body, faceted sides), their exceptionally skilled manufacture, and their beautiful, often strikingly coloured and/or marbled raw material." (Sheridan 2002 p. 209).

Add to bibliography:Alison Sheridan 1992. 'Scottish Stone Axeheads: some new work and recent discoveries', in Niall Sharples and Alison Sheridan (eds) 2002. Vessels for the ancestors. Essays on the Neolithic of Britain and Ireland in honour of Audrey Henshall (Edinburgh University Press), pp. 194-212, especially pp. 208-10. <2>

Sources/Archives (2)

Map

Location

Grid reference	Centred NH 9064 5369 (4m by 4m) (2 map features)
Map sheet	NH95SW
Civil Parish	AULDEARN
Geographical Area	NAIRN

Finds (1)

Related Monuments/Buildings (0)

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External Links (1)