Flint axe

A flint axe was a tool used during prehistoric times to perform a variety of tasks. These were at first just a cut piece of flint stone but later handles were attached to these axe heads. The stone exhibits a glass-like fracture similar to obsidian, and can be knapped to form large blades. The offcuts were sharp enough to be used a small knives, while the larger parts of a knapped nodule could be polished to form a axe-head. They were widely used during the Neolithic period to clear forests for farming.

Occurrence

Flint nodules are commonly found in Cretaceous chalk deposits, such as those of southern Britain and northern France. They were mined during the Neolithic period in many locations, one of the most famous being at Grimes Graves in Norfolk, England.