ENGLAND AND WALES 



a small area at Stonehenge. More than a hundred 

 stone implements were found, of which the majority 

 were flint axes, probably used for dressing the 

 softer of the sandstone blocks, and also for exca- 

 vating the chalk into which the uprights were 

 set. About thirty hammer-stones suitable for 

 holding in the hand were found. These were 

 doubtless used for dressing the surface of the 

 blocks. Most remarkable of all were the ' mauls,' 

 large boulders weighing from 36 to 64 pounds, 

 used for smashing blocks and also for removing 

 large chips from the surfaces. Several antlers of 

 deer were found, one of which had been worn 

 down by use as a pickaxe. 



These excavations made it clear that the blue- 

 stones had been shaped on the spot, whereas the 

 sarsens had been roughly prepared at the place 

 where they were found, and only finished off on 

 the spot where they were erected. 



What is the date of the erection of Stonehenge ? 

 The finding of so many implements of flint in the 

 excavations of 1901 shows that the structure 

 belongs to a period when flint was still largely 

 used. The occurrence of a stain of oxide of copper 

 on a worked block of stone at a depth of 7 feet 

 does not necessarily prove that the stones were 

 erected in the bronze age, for the stain may have 

 been caused by the disintegration of malachite 

 and not of metallic copper. At the same time, 



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