Bronze Age Wooden Tool Discovered in England

DORSET, ENGLAND—Dorset View reports that a nearly complete wooden spade was uncovered in a waterlogged area near Poole Harbor in southern England by researchers from Wessex Archaeology. “It’s made of oak and radiocarbon dating of the wood itself confirms it is ca. 3,500 to 3,400 years old, placing it firmly in the Middle Bronze Age,” said Ed Treasure of Wessex Archaeology. Treasure and his colleagues think the person who lost the tool made seasonal visits to the site, since little evidence of a permanent settlement has been found in the area. To read about finds from eastern England's Must Farm settlement, go to "Bronze Age Beads Go Abroad."