British Archaeologists Unearth 300,000-Year-Old Axes

In the United Kingdom, some of the largest prehistoric stone tools, dating back 300,000 years, have been discovered. These are the "giant axes" used by the ancestors of modern humans, according to The Guardian. The artifacts were found in deep layers of glacial deposits on a hill above the Medway Valley in the county of Kent. The discovery was made by archaeologists from the Archaeology South-East at University College London (UCL).

During the excavations, approximately 800 stone artifacts were found, with an age of over 300,000 years. Among them were two large flint knives described as giant axes, believed to have been used for hunting animals and cutting meat.

The notable feature of these hand axes is their size, measuring almost 30 centimeters in length. These are the largest such tools ever found in the United Kingdom. Letty Ingrey, Senior Geo-Archaeologist at the UCL Institute of Archaeology, refers to these tools as "giants" because their length exceeds 22 centimeters. She also points out the difficulty in imagining how our ancestors could have easily held and used such large axes.

"It's possible that they served a less practical or more symbolic function than other tools, a clear demonstration of strength and skill. Although we're not sure why such large tools were created or which early human species made them, this site provides an opportunity to find answers to these intriguing questions," said Letty Ingrey.

Scientists believe that the Medway Valley is associated with the early history of the British Isles when Neanderthals and their cultures appeared, possibly even sharing this land with other early human species. At that time, the Medway Valley would have been a wild landscape of wooded hills and river valleys inhabited by noble deer, horses, and less familiar mammals such as straight-tusked elephants.

While archaeological findings of this age have been found in this region before, this is the first case where they have been discovered as part of extensive research. Therefore, it is possible that scientists will uncover numerous other prehistoric artifacts at this site.