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RARE NEANDERTHAL MOUSTERIAN FLINT AMYGDALOID HANDAXE OF THE FINEST WORKMANSHIP Rock Shelter - Caen, France MIDDLE PALEOLITHIC PERIOD (MOUSTERIAN): 80,000 - 40,000 years ago This rare handaxe was fashioned out of flint by Neanderthals over 40,000 years ago and discovered from a very important archeological site in Caen, France. The site this specimen was excavated from is now closed and protected by the government. This valuable artifact was legally collected with the landowner's permission decades ago before the area was sealed. Caen is one of France's famous Neanderthal regions and the fact that this archeological site is off-limits to any collecting, makes this wonderful stone tool artifact exceedingly rare and desirable! *** NOTE: This is one of only a small limited number of GENUINE Neanderthal handaxes we have offered for sale. They come from our private museum collection where the majority will remain reserved for. In an effort to periodically fund the further development of this museum we have decided to release this specimen from our collection to public sale. GENUINE Neanderthal handaxes such as these are too rare and too few for us to offer on a regular basis for resale. The form and execution of this extraordinary handaxe is absolutely the finest one could ask for regarding a AMYGDALOID MOUSTERIAN handaxe using the Levallois Technique. Unlike their much larger predecessors of the Sahara during the Acheulian, Mousterian handaxes are much smaller in comparison. Not only are Mousterian handaxes considered some of the rarest and most prized tools of the Neanderthals, this exquisite representation is a perfectly executed bifacial example. This rare specimen displays all edges and sharp tip without so much as a nick of modern damage. Unlike inferior surface-collected specimens, this tool was dug from the actual subterranean level that was once a Neanderthal occupation layer. What this means is that it was not weathered and damaged by exposure to the elements or plow. This entire specimen is in perfect, AS MADE condition with a rich natural satin soil sheen from long-term sediment burial along with sedimentary mineral deposits still attached. The heavy thick form of the body of the axe tapers to a fine, sharply pointed tip. Razor thin edges down both sides run all the way to the point. The finest spiral knapping was used to form the round proximal end as can be seen on the right upper edge of the tool in the second photo from the top of this page. Warm buttercream patina adds exceptional beauty! This is pure and simple masterful craftsmanship and is just one of the many hallmarks of the expertise of the Neanderthal creator of this INVESTMENT GRADE Paleolithic artifact. A truly MUSEUM GRADE specimen and excellent candidate for investment. This specimen is the finest shaped specimen we could offer and is the quintessential example of the high level of Neanderthal workmanship in a stone flaked tool! NO RESTORATION, REPAIR OR MODERN DAMAGE. The Levallois Technique is a method of flake tool manufacture that was first employed in the Acheulian Era about 250,000 years ago by archaic Homo sapiens but perfected in the Middle Paleolithic Era by Neanderthals. It consists of starting with a core of stone and using heavy percussion hammering on one side to remove large flakes in a radial fashion, creating a "turtle-back" profile on one side of the core. A single heavy blow at one end of the core struck the flake off and the end result was a prepared flake (a la Levallois) with a convex shape on one side (from initial flake removal when still attached to the core) and a flat side on the other (from the side split off the remaining core). Edges of this struck flake were then retouched to create the desired cutting edge but the geometry of the two sides remained. It was the Levallois method employed by Neanderthals to manufacture a variety of early tools including the first points that were hafted to wooden poles for use as spears. The MOUSTERIAN tool tradition gets its name from artifacts discovered at a primitive rock shelter named Le Moustier located in southwestern France. Compared to the bulkier tools of the Acheulian produced by the Levallois technique, Mousterian tools are comprised of smaller flakes from an exhaustively worked core which are then retouched on the edges to make a large variety of tools. These tools are not only smaller than Acheulian specimens, but they are more specialized for their various tasks. Mousterian tools can be broadly put into four classes: 1) SAWS (Denticulate Tools) and KNIVES, 2) SCRAPERS 3) BORERS 4) HANDAXES, CHOPPERS and CLEAVERS. Mousterian tool-makers were the primitive humans knows as the NEANDERTHALS. Neanderthals had massive skeletons and teeth, flat foreheads and heavy brow ridges. Their skulls were larger than a modern man and contained an average brain capacity of 1500 cc, averaging slightly larger than humans of today. EXTREMELY RARE - FINEST POSSIBLE WORKMANSHIP / FORM OF AN AMYGDALOID MOUSTERIAN AXE! FINE DELICATE POINTED TIP IS "AS MADE" WITH ZERO DAMAGE!!! 2.65" in length SOLD M138 INCLUDES DISPLAY BOX Actual Item - One Only |
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