Information for record number MWA9994:
Findspot - Prehistoric Flints

Summary
What Is It?  
Type: Findspot
Period: Early Mesolithic - Iron Age (10000 BC - 601 BC)
Where Is It?  
Parish: Ratley and Upton
District: Stratford on Avon, Warwickshire
Grid Reference: SP 38 47
(Data represented on this map shows the current selected record as a single point, this is for illustrative purposes only and does not represent an accurate or complete representation of archaeological sites or features)
Level of Protection National - Old SMR PrefRef (Grade: )
Sites & Monuments Record
Description

  
Source Number  

1 Worked flints, apparently residual in later contexts. Most of the flint fragments and flakes found on the site are too undistinguished to allow any close cultural attribution beyond the statement that there appears to be some prehistoric activity in the vicinity. It is always possible that some of these fragments could have been used as substitute gun flints and thus have been introduced to the site in historical time, but this is an unlikely explanation especially for the core and the smaller flakes.
2 Dating confirmed as Mesolithic to Bronze Age.
 
Sources
Source No: 1
Source Type: Excavation Report
Title: Ratley Castle Exavations 1968-1973
Author/originator: Steane, K.
Date:
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 2
Source Type: Verbal communication
Title: Aggregates Assessment
Author/originator: Stuart Palmer
Date: 2006
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Images:  
There are no images associated with this record.  
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Glossary

 
Word or Phrase
Description  
period Prehistoric About 500,000 BC to 42 AD

The Prehistoric period covers all the periods from the Palaeolithic to the end of the Iron Age.
This is a time when people did not write anything down so there is no documentary evidence for archaeologists to look at. Instead, the archaeologists look at the material culture belonging to the people and the places where they lived for clues about their way of life.

The Prehistoric period is divided into the Early Prehistoric and Later Prehistoric.
The Early Prehistoric period covers the Palaeolithic and Mesolithic periods.
The Later Prehistoric period covers Neolithic, Bronze Age and Iron Age times.
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period Mesolithic About 10,000 BC to 4001 BC

Mesolithic means 'Middle Stone Age'. It is the period that comes between the Palaeolithic (Old Stone Age) and the Neolithic (New Stone Age).

The Mesolithic period is a period of transition from the way people were living during the Palaeolithic period as hunter-gatherers to the development of farming in the Neolithic period.
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period Bronze Age About 2500 BC to 700 BC

The Bronze Age comes after the Neolithic period and before the Iron Age.

The day to day life of people in the Bronze Age probably changed little from how their ancestors had lived during the Neolithic period. They still lived in farmsteads, growing crops and rearing animals.

During the Bronze Age people discovered how to use bronze, an alloy of tin and copper (hence the name that has given to this era). They used it to make their tools and other objects, although they continued to use flint and a range of organic materials as well. A range of bronze axes, palstaves and spears has been found in Warwickshire.
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period Iron Age About 800 BC to 43 AD

The Iron Age comes after the Bronze Age and before the Roman period. It is a time when people developed the skills and knowledge to work and use iron, hence the name ‘Iron Age’ which is given to this period. Iron is a much tougher and more durable metal than bronze but it also requires more skill to make objects from it. People continued to use bronze during this period.
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monument SITE * Unclassifiable site with minimal information. Specify site type wherever possible. back
monument FINDSPOT * The approximate location at which stray finds of artefacts were found. Index with object name. back
monument CASTLE * A fortress and dwelling, usually medieval in origin, and often consisting of a keep, curtain wall and towers etc. back

* Copyright of English Heritage (1999)

English Heritage National Monuments Record