Loading, please wait...

Use mousewheel to zoom in and out, click to enlarge

Details

LOT 254606

Large Stone Age Acheulean Ovate Flint Handaxe

LOWER PALAEOLITHIC PERIOD, CIRCA 600,000-350,000 B.P.

6 7/8 in. (719 grams, 17.5 cm without stand).

Substantial and well-made handaxe with thick butt and rounded cutting edge; marked 'St Même FR'; likely made by Homo Heidelbergensis; mounted on a custom-made display stand.

Provenance

From the well regarded long closed quarry site of St Meme, Charente, France.
From an old large French collection.
Acquired on the European art market.
From a UK private collection.

Literature

Cf. MacGregor, A. (ed.), Antiquities from Europe and the Near East in the Collection of Lord McAlpine of West Green, Oxford, 1987, item 1.10, for type

Footnotes

Smaller handaxes continued as components of Middle Paleolithic industries (Acheulian and Mousterian) associated with the Neanderthal Homo Sapiens.

CONDITION

VETTING:

TimeLine Auctions follows a vetting process to ensure the authenticity and legality of all items, reinforcing our commitment to integrity and responsible trading. Each antiquity, antique, and coin lot undergoes thorough examination by a vetting committee of at least ten external specialists, professional trade association members, scientists, and archaeologists: Our Vetting Process


AUCTIONS:

TimeLine is a leading auction house specialising in antiquities, ancient art, collectables, natural history, coins, medals, and books. Our auctions offer museums, collectors, historians, and enthusiasts the opportunity to acquire unique and historically significant pieces.

LOT 254606

Large Stone Age Acheulean Ovate Flint Handaxe

Estimate £500 - 700€580 - 810 (for guidance only)$680 - 950 (for guidance only)

Opening Bid
£240 (EUR 278; USD 324) +BP*

Print page

RELATED LOTS

  • Stone Age Mixed Type Arrowhead Collection
    Stone Age Mixed Type Arrowhead Collection
    Neolithic Period, circa 6th-4th millennium B.C.

    Estimate: £50 - 70 (+bp*)

    Opening Bid: £5

    Comprising mostly bifacial and uniface leaf-shaped and piriform flint and chert arrowheads; probably from the Sahara region of North Africa. 100 grams total, 15-46 mm



    Ex UK gallery, early 2000s.

    Lot Details

  • Stone Age Clactonian Flint Scraper
    Stone Age Clactonian Flint Scraper
    Lower Palaeolithic Period, circa 700,000-300,000 B.P.

    Estimate: £30 - 40 (+bp*)

    Opening Bid: £5

    Piriform in plan with a rounded butt, two old inked collection notes 'SNC S.82 WGS' and 4087/1/28', and a pencilled note '74.7' to the other side. 74.9 grams, 72 mm



    Previously in several old Stone Age tool collections, having been annotated with three different accession numbers. Acquired from an Oxfordshire, UK, auction house. From the private collection of a West Midlands lady collector.

    Lot Details

  • Very Large Stone Age Livre de Beurre from Le Grand Pressigny
    Very Large Stone Age 'Livre de Beurre' from Le Grand Pressigny
    Neolithic Period, 5500-2400 B.P.

    Estimate: £600 - 800 (‡+bp*)

    Opening Bid: £325

    A substantial flint core or so-called 'Livre de Beurre' with vertical traces of blows on the work side, including one pronounced blade negative extending half way along the stone’s length; cortex remains and core preparation traces on other side; proximal end with impact surface, distal end with rounded point; two bifacial wave to chevron-shaped core edges; flat-prismatic cross-section; raw material for blade production, beige stone (silex) with yellow undertone, cream-coloured patches and spots, slightly shiny surface (origin: Le Grand Pressigny, Dép. Indre-et-Loire, France); old collector's label 'N13310'; supplied with a custom-made stand. 2.62 kg, 30.5 cm (3.79 kg total, 37.5 cm including stand)



    Private collection, B.G., Southwest France. Accompanied by a copy of an Art Loss Register certificate no.S00127506.

    Lot Details

Stay up-to-date with the latest from TimeLine Auctions by joining our mailing list