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Petrographic Analysis of Hammerstones from the Neolithic Quarries at Great Langdale

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 February 2014

Richard Bradley
Affiliation:
Department of Archaeology, University of Reading, Whiteknights, PO Box 218, Reading RG6 2AA
Roger Suthren
Affiliation:
Department of Geology, Oxford Polytechnic, Gipsy Lane, Headington, Oxford OX3 0BP

Abstract

This paper examines the sources of the hammerstones imported to the Neolithic axe quarries on Pike o' Stickle. Two basic groups are identified, and these probably originated in separate areas of Cumbria. They have largely distinct distributions among the quarries, raising the possibility that different parts of the stone source could have been used by people coming from different areas of the surrounding lowlands. This has implications for the social importance of axe production on these sites.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © The Prehistoric Society 1990

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References

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