Knowlks — Prehistoric Stone Implemeiits. 201 



take the trouble of collecting them. And so, many flakes from the Bann 

 district, of irregular shape,, may now: be denied a place in our collections, while 

 formerly they may possibly have been valued as useful implements. 



I have seen the flake with handle of moss, in the Academy's Museum, froni 

 the Bann. The handle is very loosely attached, and if found in close association 

 with the flake, the find is a very interesting one. Sir John Evans figures a flake 

 with a handle of skin. I have not myself found any handle connected with a 

 flake, but. I have a handle of wood from Culbane. It is somewhat globular in 

 shape, made of a gnarled root, that would not split easily. A hole has been 

 made in the handle, into which a flake or other small implement could be 

 fitted, and made secure by wedging aiid cementing. No care was taken by 

 tlie finder to observe whether a. flake or other implement was found near 

 the handle ; therefore we can only speculate on the use of the so-called handle. 

 I have tried it with a flake inserted, and show it in that condition in fig. 24. 

 The figure compares very well with the Australian flakes, which have gum 

 handles (see figs. 27, 29). 



There are many of the Bann pointed flakes like N"os. 15, 16, and 18 

 that have both sides near the point dressed off' by the coarse kind of chipjjing 

 so commonly seen in Bann implements. The flakes have thus a more pointed 

 appearance than they would have in their natural state, and they are generally 

 referred to by antiquaries as borers. It is possible that those of finer make 

 may have been used for boring holes in leather, but some of the coarser 

 pointed implements, if intended for boring, would no doubt be used for boring 

 holes in wood in order to bind together pieces of timber used in the 

 construction of huts. Some of these or any other of the tanged flakes may 

 have been used, as suggested by Sir John Evans, in spearing fish.' 



I show in figs. 17, 18, 19, 21, 22, and 23 a number of examples graduating 

 from the slightly dressed with thickish points down to those which have long 

 and slender points. No. 18 shows fine dressing at the point and round the side 

 edges. The base has also all angular parts removed. There is no dressing, on 

 the under or bulb side. It was found at the bottom of a peat bank at Gortgole 

 near the Bann. The flake shown as No 19 has its point neatly dressed all over 

 the ridge face and along the edges on the bulb face. It was found at Culbane* 

 No. 17 was found near Coleraine, and has a shorter and stouter point than 

 No. 19, with an indenture on each side. That on the right side would seem to 

 be caused by a defect in the flint, but the indenture on the left side was 

 evidently made intentionally. No. 21 comes from Gortgole, about three miles 

 below Portglenone. There is a tang formed by dressing from the bulb-face 



' Arcbacologia, xli, part ii, p . 404, ■ - .. ^ .» 



