Find Spot record 4644 - Palaeolithic Axe from Wincle

Hand axe found near Wincle, sometime in the last century, and now lodged at the Grosvenor Museum in Chester. Manufactured using what is known as the Levallois technique. Found some distance below the surface of the ground, during drain-digging operations, near the Bagstones at Wincle, late in the last century. It is described as having a very thick patina, or decomposing skin and a rich Ochre colour (1).

Flint axe discovered at Wincle, near Macclesfield, in the last century. Its provenance is not entirely satisfactory, said to have been unearthed at a depth of ten feet below the modern ground level, in a bed of gravel, during well-digging operations, no information survives as to whether it was found in situ or was discovered casually in some stage of the clearing out of the well-shaft. The very thick patina or decomposing 'skin' and colour of the artefact (which can be seen through a comparatively recent break) indicates a long period of burial in an ochreous deposit. A large flake of flint fashioned in the Levallois technique (2).

There appears to be some disparity between the two texts on where the axe was found. (1) states that the axe was found during drain digging, whereas (2) refers to a well. Historic Ordnance Survey maps from the nineteenth century show that an area of scrub was cleared to the south of The Bagstones and this seemed to involve the construction of some drainage works. C.250m to the west of the Bagstones is Honeywall (originally Honeyfall) well. Both could be conjectured to be the findspot. For the purposes of our the County Historic Environment we record the findspot as The Bagstones, which is located at approximately SJ96036513 (3).

<1> Rowley G 1982, 1982, Macclesfield in Prehistory, P.7-8 (Book). SCH2062.

<2> County Historic Environment Record, 1973-1985, Cheshire Archaeological Bulletin, Vol.5 p.4-5 (Journal/Periodical). SCH565.

<3> Various, Various, Oral communication to the HER, Edwards R 2008 (Oral Communication). SCH2330.