Amber S Roy

Polished stone axes have long been recognised as one of the most important forms of material culture in the Neolithic. Research over the last 40 years has done much to understand their origins, patterns of exchange across Europe, deposition, and social importance. Despite this long-recognised importance, little work in Britain has focused on the actual use of these objects. This article presents the first use-wear analysis of 20 Early Neolithic polished stone axes from Britain. This research shows that whilst many were used for woodworking, no doubt associated with forest clearance as agriculture spread, this masks the detailed and variable roles polished stone axes played in the emergence of Neolithic worlds in Britain, which use-wear has the capacity to reveal.

Most interpretations of ground stone artefacts are still based on their form and depositional contexts and lack scientific functional assessments, such as use-wear analysis and experimental archaeology. For instance, previous interpretations of perforated stone battle-axes and axe-hammers have been influenced by their form and similarity to the battle-axes of the Single Grave Culture in Scandinavia and have assumed the British battle-axes were purely ceremonial while the rougher axe-hammers were too large and crude to be either ceremonial or functional. Studies of typology, manufacturing processes and identification of petrological sources have failed to resolve the use of these implements. This paper presents the methodological approach used to revisit artefact function in the first large-scale application of use-wear analysis on Early Bronze Age battle-axes and axe-hammers from Northern Britain and the Isle of Man, 2200–500 BCE. The data supports a reassessment of the role of these objects, indicating they were versatile and multi-functional tools while expanding traceological research data for bladed ground stone artefacts. Moreover, it enhances the field of use-wear analysis on bladed ground and polished stone artefacts, of which only a small fraction have been analysed in this manner. As such, this research demonstrates the academic potential of applying use-wear analysis and experimental archaeology to the study of ground stone artefacts, which has thus far received less attention than knapped and flaked industries.

Experimental archaeology and use-wear analysis are methods used together to understand aspects of an object's life, such as manufacture and use. This paper demonstrates the benefits of analysing use-wear through experiments. It presents the results of experiments carried out to test the use of battle-axes and axe-hammers. Most notably, the paper presents the new discovery of a previously unknown use-wear formation, the three-group-arrangement;. This is a formation of wear on bladed implements which forms in the early stages of use – in contact with wood using chopping motions. Its discovery was only possible through the analysis of wear development throughout experiments. This use-wear formation was analysed on stone battle-axes and axe-hammers from the northern British Isles, c. 2200 - 1500 BC. It allowed an interpretation of their use which was not previously possible for several artefacts in this assemblage.

The perforated stone battle-axes and axe-hammers of Early Bronze Age Britain have been used either to interpret the status of individuals they were buried with or have been overlooked; this is especially the case with axe-hammers. Previous understandings have assumed battle-axes were purely ceremonial, while the rougher axe-hammers were neither functional nor prestigious, being too large and too crude to be prestige items. Studies of the 20th century were focused on creating a typology and understanding the manufacture and petrological sources of the stone, concluding that haphazard exploitation of stone was used to create a variety of different shapes of both implements. This paper revisits the question of how these artefacts were used. It presents the results of the first large-scale application of use-wear analysis to British Early Bronze Age battle-axes and axe-hammers, from northern Britain and the Isle of Man. Combining the results of the wear analysis with experimental archae...

The perforated stone battle-axes and axe-hammers of Early Bronze Age Britain have been used either to interpret the status of individuals they were buried with or have been overlooked; this is especially the case with axe-hammers. Previous understandings have assumed battle-axes were purely ceremonial, while the rougher axe-hammers were neither functional nor prestigious, being too large and too crude to be prestige items. Studies of the 20th century were focused on creating a typology and understanding the manufacture and petrological sources of the stone, concluding that haphazard exploitation of stone was used to create a variety of different shapes of both implements. This paper revisits the question of how these artefacts were used. It presents the results of the first large-scale application of use-wear analysis to British Early Bronze Age battle-axes and axe-hammers, from northern Britain and the Isle of Man. Combining the results of the wear analysis with experimental archaeology and contextual analysis, it is argued that these objects were functional tools, some of which saw prolonged use that might have spanned multiple users. The evidence shows that the few implements found in burial contexts were both functional and symbolic; their inclusion in burial contexts drawing upon relational links which developed through the itineraries of these objects. It is also apparent that use and treatment were similar across all types of battle-axe and axe-hammer, with some regional variation in the deposition of axe-hammers in south-west Scotland.

Experimental archaeology and use-wear analysis are methods used together to understand aspects of an object’s life, such as manufacture and use. This paper demonstrates the benefits of analysing use-wear through experiments. It presents the results of experiments which were carried out to test the use of battle-axes and axe-hammers. Most notably, the paper presents the new discovery of a previously unknown use-wear formation, the ‘three-group-arrangement’. This is a formation of wear on bladed implements which forms in the early stages of use – in contact with wood using chopping motions. Its discovery was only possible through the analysis of wear development throughout experiments. This use-wear formation was analysed on stone battle-axes and axe-hammers from the northern British Isles, c. 2200 - 1500 BC and allowed an interpretation of their use which was not previously possible for several artefacts in this assemblage. The discovery of this wear pattern significantly adds to the knowledge of use-wear formation on bladed and perforated, ground and polished stone implements which have previously been overlooked. It allows the previously unfeasible interpretation of less developed wear, formed during the early stages of use in contact with wood. The results demonstrate the importance of analysing the changing use-wear formations throughout experiments to understand the formation of use-wear patterns on implements in the archaeological record.

This paper will analyse the use of battle-axes in the battle-axe culture in Scandinavia, also known as the single-grave culture in Denmark, and corded-ware culture in areas of Northern and Eastern Europe. This period c. 2850-2350 BC saw a change of focus from the group to the individual within a group – for example the characteristic single graves of the battle-axe culture buried according to a new set of rules with specific orientation and graves goods. The presence of battle-axes in many of these burials has resulted in a continued interest as well as differing conclusions for their use and significance. Indeed, the presence of battle-axes in a position close to the head in such single inhumations has led many scholars to argue for their significance to that society1. Across the literature they have mostly been viewed as either weapons, symbols of weapons, or symbols of the elite, although there are also arguments for their functional use. As such this paper will assess the potent...