Pick

A Neolithic - Bronze Age antler pick. This pick was made from a red deer antler tine. There are some very distinctive cutmarks which indicate a flint tool was used to cut the tine and work on the hole for the handle. there is some wear and polishing around the hole which is related to the movement of the haft. There is also some polishing around the tip which is partially due to natural wear and tear from the red deer and also partially from use/wear as a pick.

Antler was a valuable material for making tools in the Neolithic and Bronze Age. It could be foraged as Red deer shed their antler every year in late winter to early spring. It was part of the natural rhythm of the year and these communities knew when and where to find the shed antlers. There are many processes to prepare the antler and then to shape it, including using a bow drill to make the perforation for the handle. It is time-consuming and highly skilful, but these tools were a vital part of the toolkit.

Picks like this one were used in the construction of structures like barrows for the dead, ditches and also in mines. Several have been found preserved in the flint mines at Grimes Graves. There are barrows in Greenwich Park that are thought to date to the Bronze Age that are not that far away from where this pick was found. This pick was found on the Thames foreshore. It is possible that it may have been used at the water’s edge. This was an important landscape in the Neolithic/Bronze Age providing access to valuable resources. Another explanation could be that it was deliberately placed into the river, perhaps as an offering or to give thanks. Rivers, springs and other watery places have long held great significance to communities and are at the centre of many different beliefs.