{ "record":[ { "id":"99", "old_findID":"MAS-O100099", "uniqueID":"99", "objecttype":"HANDAXE", "classification":"TOOLS AND EQUIPMENT", "subclass":"CUTTING EQUIPMENT", "length":"80", "height":null, "width":"60", "weight":null, "thickness":"30", "diameter":null, "quantity":"1", "otherRef":null, "curr_loc":"With finder", "discoveryMethod":"5", "treasureID":null, "broadperiod":"PALAEOLITHIC", "numdate1":null, "numdate2":null, "description":"
Heavily sea-rolled and worn worked flint tool, covered in chalk patination (see third image). The flint measures 80 mm long, 60 mm wide and 30 mm thick, and unfortunately about 20% of the working end has recently broken off. Due to wear and damage on this hand-worked tool it has been difficult to confidently identify. Bryan Popple of Bournemouth Natural Science Society and Museum believes it could possibly be Homo neanderthalensis <\/em>dating to around 200,000 years bp (before present). The smaller size indicates typical Neanderthal workings in comparison to the larger and older Homo heidelbergensis<\/em> handaxe previously reported as MAS-100062. The attached images shows both handaxes for comparison. The possible Neanderthal tool is the smaller darker tool. Matt Leivers, an in-house flint specialist at Wessex Archaeology was unsure whether the flint was a handaxe and would need to visually inspect the object in order to be certain.<\/p>", "notes":"