KENT, ENGLAND—The Guardian reports that some 800 artifacts thought to be more than 300,000 years old were uncovered in Ice Age sediments in a sinkhole and ancient river channel in southeastern England’s Medway Valley by a team of researchers from University College London. Two of the objects are large handaxes, one of which measures about a foot long. They both have long, finely worked pointed tips and thicker bases. “These handaxes are so big it’s difficult to imagine how they could have been easily held and used,” said team member Letty Ingrey. “Perhaps they fulfilled a less practical or more symbolic function than other tools, a clear demonstration of strength and skill,” she mused. The newly discovered objects were likely made by Neanderthals during a time when they may have shared the landscape with other early human species. To read more about Neanderthal tool-making traditions, go to "Neanderthal Tool Time."
