M362 - RARE MOUSTERIAN CLEAVER HAND AXE FROM AFRICA IN UNUSUAL PORPHYRIC FLINT

Product Description

ID

Mousterian Hand Axe

FOUND

Exposed Site - South Central Sahara

AGE

MOUSTERIAN: 60,000 - 30,000 years

SIZE

4" long x 2.65" wide

CONDITION

INTACT AND COMPLETE.
NO REPAIR OR RESTORATION.
MADE OF AN UNUSUAL FLINT
PORPHYRY!

NOTE

AFRICAN MOUSTERIAN TOOLS
ARE NOT OFTEN SEEN IN 
COLLECTIONS.  COMPLETE 
AND UNDAMAGED WITH SHARP
TIP.  A SUPERB MIDDLE 
PALEOLITHIC MOUSTERIAN
SPECIMEN MADE OF BIZARRE
PORPHYRY FLINT!

Actual Item - One Only

Comes with a certificate of 
authenticity / information sheet

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT MOUSTERIAN TOOLS

This is a SPECTACULAR bifacial Mousterian CLEAVER hand axe made out of a rare porphyric flint showing a bizarre spotted pattern in the stone.  Its highly unusual and beautiful patterns were most likely prized by its prehistoric maker as much as it is today to a collector.  This type of flint is extremely rare in African tool assemblages and we have only seen a handful of specimens made from it out of hundreds of thousands we have handled.  The CLEAVER typology is also much less commonly seen compared to more typical pointed biface axes. 

Possessing a well made flaked grip ingeniously incorporating the natural bulbous nodule of the natural stone, this piece is a prize example of MOUSTERIAN flaking technique and workmanship.  It displays classic Middle Paleolithic traits and is in perfect, AS MADE original condition!  The chopping tip is unbroken and is unusually sharp and entirely intact AS MADE! 

Unlike their much larger predecessors of the Sahara during the Acheulian, Mousterian handaxes are much smaller in comparison.  In "as found" ORIGINAL condition with  NO REPAIR AND NO RESTORATION.  The glossy patina is called "Desert Varnish", a result from the blowing winds polishing the surface and depositing a microscopic layer of silica on the faces that lay exposed for tens of thousands of years.