British Museum

Two exceptional metalwork deposits, discovered at Melsonby, North Yorkshire, together constitute one of the largest Iron Age hoards recovered in Britain. Dominated by ornate horse harness and vehicle parts, these first-century AD assemblages provide possibly the first evidence for four-wheeled wagons from Iron Age Britain. Associated geographically and temporally with another hoard found in 1843 and with the Late Iron Age ‘royal site’ at Stanwick, these deposits have the potential to broaden our understanding not only of the varied forms of wheeled transport but also of expressions of wealth, status and elite mortuary practices in Iron Age Britain.

• 3D scans of 795 handaxes used to extract variables related to knapping skill. • Comparison of skill from the first two waves of Acheulean occupation in Britain. • Highly significant differences in handaxe thinness, symmetry, and edge regularity. • There was a pronounced increase in hominin skill between MIS15 and MIS13/12. • Increased motor control may have implications for the emergence of speech. Flake scar patterning indicates Acheulean knappers were attempting to make thin, symmetrical handaxes with regular edges. In this study we quantify these elements of handaxe form and test the variation between the first two waves of Acheulean occupation in Britain. The results show a marked contrast between these groups in thinness, symmetry, and edge regularity. Handaxes from sites such as Fordwich dated to > 0.56 Ma are crude, whereas those from sites including Boxgrove dated to ∼0.48 Ma are highly refined. This contrast in biface skill outcomes seems to have been facilitated by the use of soft-hammers and platform preparation, both of which are evident at Boxgrove. Furthermore, it suggests an increase in hominin motor control around half a million years ago that may have implications for the emergence of speech.

The Lower Palaeolithic site of Barnfield Pit, Swanscombe, UK, is famous for its extensive geological sequence that represents the whole of the Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 11 (Hoxnian) interglacial. Its archaeology records a change in stone tool manufacture within the MIS 11c substage, from a Clactonian core and flake assemblage in the earliest part of the sequence (Phase I) to an abundance of Acheulean handaxes of pointed form in the Middle Gravels (Phase II). The Phase III deposits, particularly the Upper Loam, correlated with MIS 11a, have long been claimed to contain a further shift in the Acheulean tool forms, from a point dominated to an ovate dominated handaxe tradition that features tools with twisted edges. Here, we explore the character and validity of the Phase III assemblage from Barnfield Pit, combining a three-dimensional geometric morphometric approach to the study of handaxe shape alongside qualitative measures of post depositional processes. Our results demonstrate that the Phase III deposits contain an assemblage that is morphologically distinct from that within the Phase II Middle Gravels and comparable to those from laterally equivalent MIS 11a sites on Dartford Heath. At the same time, we highlight the complexity of the archaeology within the upper deposits at Barnfield Pit and suggest that the change in normative approaches to tool manufacture that is observed within the Lower Thames Valley between MIS 11c and MIS 11a may occur earlier than previously thought. This presents significant implications for our understanding of hominin social upheaval in response to global climatic cooling across Britain and northwestern Europe.

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Abstract Marine plastic pollution is an issue that threatens most places around the world, including the remote and unique Galapagos archipelago. We used the archaeological framework of object itineraries as part of a story-writing workshop to explore perceptions of marine plastic litter (MPL) by students from two schools in Puerto Ayora, Santa Cruz. Their stories, adopting an archaeological approach to plastic litter as artefacts, told the itinerary of MPL collected on Galapagos shores. We also analysed surveys evaluating their self-reported knowledge, pro-environmental behaviours (PEBs) and perceptions of the issue of MPL before and after the workshop. Our findings showed good awareness of MPL origins and impacts, reflecting the specific pathways of litter reaching this Pacific archipelago from mainland South America, regional marine activities including fishing in and around the Galapagos Marine Reserve, and local sources, although those are thought to be limited. Yet the lack of focus on solutions in the stories and the emphasis on recycling PEBs suggest more targeted activities are needed to address the need of complementary solutions and to place more emphasis on reducing plastic use.

Bronze mou vessels appear in Shu tombs in south-west China during the Eastern Zhou period (c. 771–256 BC). Examination of these vessels reveals major changes in the supply of metal and alloying technology in the Shu State, throwing new light on the social impact of the Qin conquest and later unification of China.