Researchers from University College London discovered the giant hand axes in Ice Age sediments in an ancient river channel in the Medway Valley in southeastern England. The hand axes were found among 800 artifacts buried on a hillside in Frindsbury, Kent. The artifacts were found in the excavation site at Manor Farm that began in 2021. The ancient artifacts are believed to be from the Middle Pleistocene age.
The giant hand axes were crafted from flint stone and measure more than a foot long from tip to butt, plus have very thick bases. Scientists are baffled as to how prehistoric humans were able to use the large stone tools.
"We describe these tools as 'giants' when they are over 22cm long and we have two in this size range," senior archaeologist Letty Ingrey of the University College London Institute of Archeology said in a press release. Ingrey said one of the hand axes is the "longest ever found in Britain."
"These hand axes are so big it’s difficult to imagine how they could have been easily held and used," Ingrey added. "Perhaps they fulfilled a less practical or more symbolic function than other tools, a clear demonstration of strength and skill."
