File:Bronze Age, Developed flat axe (FindID 582543).jpg

English: Cast bronze (copper alloy) flat axe of early Bronze Age date (2000-1700BC). The axe is complete with very little wear. In plan the axe is broadly rectangular with an expanded and splayed crescentic cutting edge and thin rectangular (rectangular with rounded edges) shaped butt. In profile the axe has a distinct lentoid shape. In section the axe is broadly rectangular (rectangular with rounded edges) and there are no signs of raised flanges or hafting augmentation. At the mid-point of the axe is a slight median swelling / bevel / proto stop-ridge. The long edges of the axe expand slightly from the butt until they splay to form the crescent shaped blade. The blade is crisp and unabraded with only slight abrasion on the tips. However it is likely that the axe had been worn and used prior to deposition, with the blade shape being slightly distorted by use. The side of the axe are relatively uniform and there is no evidence of a cast seam. They are best described as curved rather than faceted (diamond sectioned) and have been decorated with a hammered herringbone pattern. This is well preserved on one long edge and similar residual decoration is present on the other (although this is partially lost through lamination of surface patina). There is no evidence for hammered decoration on the front and rear surfaces of the axe. The axe is a mid brassy brown colour with a small areas of mid brown preserved surface patina. The patina is reminiscent of that seen on metalwork from waterlogged areas, the findspot is close to a modern water channel / water course.

The axe has been X-Rayed by the conservation department at Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery, this showed a series of small surface pock-marks - mostly corrosion marks (which are more evident at the thin butt). They also showed a series of stress fractures along the cutting edge - possibly a result of hammering and sharpening. The axe was also anaylsised using XRF which looked at the metal surface - this showed the that the axe was formed from a leaded bronze, Copper (Cu 45.91%, Tin (Sn) 37.85% and Lead (Pb) 1.37% there was also a show of Iron (Fe) 10.05% which is most likely to be surface deposits from the burial conditions.

The axehead is best described as coming from the later phases of the Early Bronze Age of metalworking stage V specifically within the early developed flat axe tradition which corresponds to Needham's (1996) Period 3 circa 2000 - 1700 CAL. BC. This axe is very similar to those identified as Type Scrabo Hill (Burgess and Schmidt: plate 29-30) which are typified as having straight sides , straight or slightly rounded butt and a much expanded crescentic cutting edge (ibid p63-64). Many of the long edges within these example s are decorated with either cabling or herringbone designs.

The overall length is 131.4mm and the axe weighs 336.8 grams. The butt measures 25.4mm width and is 2.2mm thick. The width of the axe at the median bevel is 29.5mm and thickness 14.4mm. The width at the crescentic blade is 75.7mm.