Knowi-ks — Vrehistnric Stone Implements. 215 



therefore so may No. 97. No. 100 is one of several axes in my collection of tlie 

 same shape. I believe the axes of this kind, with straight squared sides, have 

 been formed by sawing thin slabs of the clay-slate. No. 100 is 4J- inches long, 

 21 inches broad at the cutting edge, and f inch thick. It is ground at the 

 edge only. Fig. 101 has expanding edges caused by the grinding of the sides 

 in the centre. I have an axe similarly shaped by chipping the sides. No. 101 

 is 3 inches long and 2 inches broad at the cutting edge, and is -g- of an inch 

 thick in the centre. It was found at Culbane. No. 102 is evidently a portion 

 of a larger implement, perhaps an axe like No. 103. It supplies the best 

 evidence of the sawing of the slabs of clay-slate rock which I have already 

 referred to. The method of sawing adopted was to saw the slab partly on 

 both sides, and when nearly met in the middle not to spend time sawing all 

 the way through, but to tap it till it broke. On the right side of this chisel 

 it can be seen that the sawing from the two sides had nearly met, and only 

 one thin raised portion shows the part that was broken. The cuttings on each 

 face on the right side were exactly opposite each other, but on the left side, 

 while the lines of sawing were opposite at the lower end or edge of the figure, 

 they moved away from each other towards the top or butt end, and the 

 difference between the lines was at that part three-sixteenths of an inch. On 

 the side view is seen distinctly the portion broken off, which has been 

 smoothed down, but not to the level of the sawn portions. This specimen 

 was found at Culbane. 



I formerly did not believe that the prehistoric people in Ireland had 

 resorted to sawing of rocks, like the New Zealanders and inhabitants of 

 the Swiss lake-dwellings, to form axes and chisels. I thought the hardened 

 shale rock had broken naturally into the various shapes we found exhibited 

 in the axes, but No. 102 has thrown a new light on the subject, 

 and now I believe that the straight sides observed in many axes 

 and chisels are the result of sawing the clay-slate. We thus see a new 

 industry along the banks of the Bann which we did not previously suspect. 

 I have not met with any saw-like flints, nor would any flake be long enougli 

 or straight enough in the edge to cut the long, straight sides of many chisels 

 and axes found in the neighbourhood of the Bann. If this people felt the 

 necessity for sawing the rock, I do not think it would be beyond their 

 capability to invent some such saw as is shown in fig. 28, PI. XIII. They 

 evidently struck off large quantities of small flakes, and it would not be hard to 

 fix a number of these in a frame of wood to use as a saw. They may, however, 

 have worked patiently with the point of a flake in one groove till the 

 sawing was completed. However it was done, I believe the act of sawing to 

 form the axes and chisels cannot now he disputed. No. 103 is an axe with 



