How can we tell what time period an artefact is from?

Archaeologists use the artefacts they dig up from the ground to learn more about the lives of people in the past. But did you know that there’s a technique called stratigraphy that archaeologists use to tell what period of history the artefacts came from? We used the artefacts from the Roman Baths Museum's collections to demonstrate how stratigraphy works. 

Stratigraphy handling table at the Roman Baths

Stratigraphy 

What is stratigraphy?

Stratigraphy refers to the study of stratas, or layers of the soil. Simply put, if an artefact is discovered in a layer further down in the soil, it is probably older than an artefact discovered higher up in the soil. If an artefact is found within the same layer as another artefact, it is generally considered to be from the same period.

Stratigraphy trays

 

Which of these objects were discovered deeper in the soil?

The artefacts in the tray on the left are from the prehistoric era, and would be found at a deeper level than the artefacts in the tray on the right, which are from the Victorian era. You can see an axe head, and an animal bone with marks of butchery in the prehistoric tray, but the artefacts in the Victorian tray, such as the key and decorated plate, are much more recognisable to the kind of objects we would use today!

Historical pottery 

Pottery from different time periods

The piece of Roman pottery is an example of mortarium, a type of kitchen ware used to grind up foods such as herbs, like a modern mortar and pestle. You can see the grit inside which helped the grinding process. Early Mediaeval pottery was often hand-made, with techniques such as stamping used for decoration, shown on our mediaeval pottery piece. As we can see by the Victorian pottery, Victorians used decorative tableware to show off their wealth. This era saw the introduction of transfer printed tableware, although this plate fragment is hand-painted. 

Think like an archaeologist? 

Can you guess where these pots were found in the soil?

It is very useful for archaeologists to analyse how the same type of artefact, such as pottery, appears in different soil layers, as then we can get a clearer idea of differences in methods, tools, and materials throughout history. Isn’t it interesting how artefact 2, the modern pottery, looks quite similar to artefact 3, the prehistoric pottery? Stratigraphy can show us how some objects can change so much throughout time, and how some objects seem to stay the same! 

 (Correct answers: A2, B1, C3) 

Ruby

Placement student

Stone Age Toolbox

Prehistoric tools are fascinating! The technology to make them is so old, yet we can still recreate them today. 

‘Stone Age Toolbox’ handling table, August 2023

The oldest man-made object in the Roman Baths collection is a Palaeolithic hand axe made of chert (a type of rock). A hand axe is a hand-held stone tool used for digging, chopping, scraping, piercing, and hammering. These axes are the longest used tool in human history, used throughout the Palaeolithic period (1,000,000 to 12,000 years ago) and most likely into the Mesolithic period (12,000 to 6,000 years ago).

Replica of a Palaeolithic hand axe

This hand axe, found near Bath, dates from 500,000 – 250,000 years ago! It was made by Homo Heidelbergensis, a species of early human who no longer exists, and yet it still fits comfortably in the palm of your hand. This physical connection to early humans is what makes the Prehistoric period so interesting.

During the Neolithic period (6,000 to 4,200 years ago), handles were added to axe heads, as they start to be used to cut down trees to create fields. This was the start of crop farming, a new idea which spread from the continent.

Axe head with handle

Axes continued to be used to cut down trees for the rest of the Prehistoric period however the format of the handles changed drastically during the Bronze Age (4,600 to 2,700 years ago). This was to compensate for the new methods of construction of axes; they were being cast in bronze in two-part moulds, creating the distinctive ridge around the axe head.

Bronze Age socketed axe head

Flint was used to create tools during the Prehistoric period. Large pieces were used as axes and smaller pieces used to make tools. This was done in a process called flint knapping, where the hammerstone (a rock) is hit against a core (piece of flint) to create the desired shape. This is continued until a tool has been created that is comfortable to hold. To create the sharp cutting edge, the flint knapper chips away at the tool with smaller, softer items, such as bone, which is more precise than the first attempt.

Flintknapping, drawing by José-Manuel Benito Álvarez

Palaeolithic burins and flint blades were made from the flint chips created during flint knapping. Burins are small pieces of flint with sharpened edges, usually in the shape of a circle. They were used to create leather by scraping the skin, then to make clothing by piercing holes into the leather and sewing it together with grasses. Flint blades were used to cut soft materials such as food, animal skin, plants, or twigs.

Palaeolithic burin

During the Mesolithic and into the Neolithic period, microliths and arrowheads start to be used. Microliths are small flint shards, usually attached to a handle.

Mesolithic microliths

Prehistory is about so much more than just weapons and fighting. Most of the objects in the collection are tools for the creation of food or resources, for example arrowheads used for hunting animals.

Jen

Placement student

 

Edited by Eleanor, Collections Assistant

Tuesday Times Tables: Fascinating Flint

Flint is an exceptionally hard material, and if worked correctly, it can be sharper than a metal razor. It’s no surprise then that it is one of the first materials to be shaped by prehistoric man.

Examining flint tools today connects the modern world with the prehistoric in a way that reminds us of the extraordinary ingenuity that brought us to where we are now.

In an attempt to celebrate this connection, a small assortment of the Roman Baths’ most impressive flint tools were on display for one night next to the Great Bath for visitors to handle.

Our handling tables give visitors the chance to pick up and examine objects from our collection.

The Roman Baths has well over a thousand individual pieces of flint in its collection from archaeological sites throughout Bath and North East Somerset, including arrowheads, scrapers, and blades. At first glance, many visitors could easily make out the familiar shape of an arrowhead, or a small blade, but the earliest flint tools are less familiar. One of the most remarkable examples was on display for handling – a handaxe, found in Priston.

A Palaeolithic handaxe. The point of the axe has broken off.

We can recognise the handaxe (pictured above) by its sharp edges that would have joined at an obvious point, had the point not broken off. It sits in the hand comfortably, and provokes the holder to try and imitate its original owner. Self-restraint comes easy when reminded that this particular handaxe was created over 250,000 years ago.

Next to that, the other objects on the table seemed relatively young, ranging from 11,000 to 4,000 years old.

The age of these objects is often astounding, and almost impossible to grasp. Even more astounding is that prehistoric worked flint can be found in the most common of places, like a garden or field. All it takes is a keen eye and interest, and before long you could build up a collection as big as the Roman Baths!

Simon
Placement

Stanton Drew – The Secret of the Stones

Stanton Drew Main Stone Circle

In 2009, as part of the Festival of British Archaeology events, we went out into the parish of Stanton Drew. Here lies a little known set of stone circles that date to 2000-3000 BC. What’s most interesting about this site is that, unlike Avebury and Stonehenge, it has never been excavated. In 1997, a geophysical survey of the stone circles turned up some impressive results – wooden post holes were found indicating that there would have once been a series of wooden circles on the site.

In 2009, Bath and Camerton Archaeological Society, under the careful guidance of Richard Sermon (County Archaeologist for BANES), carried out a geophysical survey of the cove. The cove is a name given to three stones outlying the stone circles – the findings indicated that these three stones were once part of a long barrow, a place where the ancient people used to bury their dead.


Members of Bath and Camerton at The Cove

 We set up displays in the local village hall; we had a story teller, handling objects and coil pot making activities. The WVS were on hand to serve tea and cake (some of the best I have ever tasted). There was a flint knapper making prehistoric flint tools in the ‘Druids Arms’ garden (alongside the cove) and a self guided walk that allowed everyone to enjoy the archaeology.

Flint Knapper in Action

A big thank you must go to all those who got involved - the villagers, teachers, school children, local farmers and landowners, Bath and Camerton Archaeological Society and the other interest groups who came on the day to share some of thieirwork. It truly was a magical day in a very special setting.

Coil Pot Making

In 2010, we explored the Medieval in Englishcombe (see Katrina’s previous blog for more details!) and this year for the Festival of British Archaeology we are back in the prehistoric, but this time we want to share with you the ‘Secrets of the Downs’. We will be at the University of Bath Arts Barn on Saturday 30th July 2011. So if, like me, you are really into your archaeology or maybe you just want a fantastic free day out with the family – why not come along…..


For more details on the event this year please follow the link below

http://www.romanbaths.co.uk/whats_on/events1.aspx


For the full and in-depth report on the geophysical survey findings please go to

http://www.stantondrewchurch.org/stones/bacasreport.pdf

Helen Harman - Collections Assistant