Eltringham Flint

Known to be 10,000 years old, this palaeolithic (Old Stone Age) flint was an incredible find when it was discovered in 1994.  It is the oldest man-made object to be found in the region, proving that people were living in the north east of England in 8000BC.

The Stone Age is a period in human prehistory distinguished by the original development of stone tools. Stone was widely used in the manufacture of implements with a sharp edge, a point, or a percussion surface. The period lasted roughly 2.5 million years, from the time of early hominids through to Homo sapiens, and largely ended between 6000 and 2000 BC with the advent of metalworking. Although Paleolithic cultures left no written records, the shift from nomadic life to settlement and agriculture can be inferred from a range of archaeological evidence. Evidence includes ancient technology in the form of tools, such as the Eltringham flint.