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Figurines and other human made objects from the United Kingdom
John Darvill has made many discoveries of what appear to be objects made by prehistoric humans in various parts of the UK which are very similar to ice age objects from Continental Europe. Because John Darvill is not a university teacher or researcher, these are not available for publication in scientific journals. Note also that the objects were surface-collected and thus currently hold little to no scientific value, but are fascinating nevertheless.
Swanscombe figurine in the Lalinde/Gönnersdorf tradition
An image of a single, seemingly modified, unifacial flint flake in the classic symbolic Lalinde/Gönnersdorf form. 48mm x 15mm x 5mm. This small unifacial flint flake was a surface find from Swanscombe, Kent, UK. The flake was discovered in an area that has produced a significant amount of worked flint tools and other seemingly modified symbolic material.
Collection, photo and text: © John Darvill
Swanscombe is a town located in North Kent, South East England. The town lies about 32 km east-southeast of Central London, at the base of a promontory bordered by the River Thames.
The site of potential interest is situated on the south bank of the River Thames with commanding views over the river and the Swanscombe Peninsula. The site is close to world-famous quarries. Historically, the area is especially famous for the Swanscombe Heritage Park, where the 400 000 BP 'Swanscombe Man; (early Neanderthal) skull fragments were discovered.
Map with a red circle added by John Darvill from: OpenStreetMap Foundation/ See: https://www.openstreetmap.org/copyright
Permission: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 license (CC BY-SA 2.0).
Map with Kent in red: © Britannica AI, https://www.britannica.com/place/Kent-county-England
Text: © John Darvill
The Swanscombe Peninsula in Kent, showing the position of the Swanscombe Heritage Park.
Photo: © Google Earth
Swanscombe is one of only two sites in Britain where actual human remains of this very early period have been found.
Three different pieces of the same skull - the Swanscombe Skull - were found on separate occasions in 1935, 1936 and 1955.
The Swanscombe Heritage Park, in the former Barnfield Pit quarry, is landscaped across the deposits that contained these finds.
Text above: ©Swanscombe Heritage Park, www.swanscombeheritagepark.co.uk
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The geology of the site consists of two main sedimentary formations. Other notable geology features in the area include the Cobham & Swanscombe lignite beds.
Upper Chalk Formation (Cretaceous, 85 million years old): Soft, white limestone rich in flint nodules. Chalk bedrock forms the underlying floor across the area, which led to extensive chalk quarrying in the 19th and 20th centuries.
Thanet Sand Formation (Palaeocene, 56–59 million years old): A bed of fine-grained, greenish-grey to buff marine sand that sits directly on top of the Chalk.
The Cobham and Swanscombe lignite beds are Early Palaeogene (early Eocene, 56 million years old) sedimentary strata. They are celebrated in geology and paleobotany for providing a terrestrial window into one of the most extreme global warming events in Earth’s history: the Palaeocene–Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM)
The Swanscombe area of interest: A transit camp or main occupational camp?
The immediate area has produced what resemble several hundred humanly worked lithic tools, including worked bone, thermally altered worked flint, ochre and other personal ornaments such as pendants and beads. With the above in mind, it appears that the site of potential interest could arguably be a main occupational site as opposed to a transit camp. Objects such as thermally altered stones would have taken considerable time and effort to produce, thus perhaps suggesting a site of permanent occupation.
Text above: © John Darvill
Homo neanderthalensis on the banks of the River Thames in Swansombe, Kent.
Rephotography: Don Hitchcock 2018
Photo: Video frame, Natural History Museum, London
Acheulean handaxe probably used by early Neanderthals, found at Swanscombe, Kent, England.
Age: Circa 400 000 BP.
Photo: Don Hitchcock 2018
Catalog: E5441
Source and text: Original, Natural History Museum, London
Acheulean handaxes probably used by early Neanderthals, found at Swanscombe, Kent, England.
Age: Circa 400 000 BP.
Photo: Don Hitchcock 2018
Catalog: E4190, E5444
Source and text: Original, Natural History Museum, London
Clactonian stone tools, possibly used by Homo heidelbergenis , found at Swanscombe, Kent, England.
Age: Circa 420 000 BP.
Photo: Don Hitchcock 2018
Catalog: E1817, E3267
Source: Original, Natural History Museum, London
In 1935 and 1936 work at Barnfield Pit by Alvan T. Marston, an amateur archaeologist who visited the pit between quarrying operations to search for flint tools, uncovered two fossilised skull fragments, an occipital and a left parietal, respectively, within the Upper Middle Gravel.
In 1955 another part of a skull, a right parietal, was found by John Wymer at a location more than 24 metres away from the other fragments. These fragments interlock in a way that indicates that all three fragments belong to the same skull. These fragments came to be known as the remains of Swanscombe Man, though it is now suggested these remains belonged to a woman. The Swanscombe skull has been identified as early Neanderthal or pre-Neanderthal.
Permission: Licensed under CC-BY-4.0
All three images are © Trustees of the Natural History Museum, London.
Important sites in the Swanscombe area, including Barnfield Pit, site of the Swanscombe skull.
Image: White (2017)
The Barnfield Gravel Pit.
It had been known for decades for the stone tools found there, dating from the Acheulean era and for the fossils of animals from the Middle Pleistocene.
Image: Halabella, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L5K30etcIxE
Image of a potential symbolic artefact. It is of the Lalinde form, carved in bone, and it still retains a significant amount of red ochre.
The red staining appears to have been heat-applied, as there are traces of what look like nano-bubbles on the surface. It has a protruding knob on the side at the top (head), as in the example below.
Collection, photo and text: © John Darvill
Image of a potential symbolic artefact.
It is of the Lalinde form, and is made of fossilised wood. It has a protruding knop/knob on the same side as the example above, at the top (head).
( Note that Mr Darvill has, in the two examples above, described a protruding knop/knob. If this had been on the other side, as in most Lalinde figures, it would have been described as an indication of breasts. - Don )
Collection, photo and text: © John Darvill
Three potentially modified symbolic representations carved on jet/lignite.
All three share remarkable similarities with Upper Palaeolithic, Magdalenian Lalinde typology figurines from Europe.
All were found at Swanscombe, Kent, England.
Collection, photo and text: © John Darvill
Two potentially modified symbolic representations carved on jet/lignite. These two potential examples share remarkable similarities with Upper Palaeolithic, Magdalenian Gönnersdorf typologies from Europe.
Both were found at Swanscombe, Kent, England.
Collection, photo and text: © John Darvill
Left: A modified ochre stained deer tooth resembling a Lalinde symbolic form.
Right: A natural unmodified deer tooth.
Both specimens were found at Swanscombe, Kent, England.
Collection, photo and text: © John Darvill
Two examples of symbolic carvings that closely resemble a Gönnersdorf symbolic form.
They are made of what may be cancellous (porous) antler.
The above examples are very similar to each other, and both are 75mm in height.
Given their remarkable similarities, their being of the same material, and their having the same overall shape and height, it is entirely possible that they were made by the same hand.
Both specimens were found at Swanscombe, Kent, England
Collection, photo and text: © John Darvill
This object appears to have been carved on a small off cut of bone.
Object found at Swanscombe, Kent, England
Collection, photo and text: © John Darvill
Two lignite beads and a sandstone ringlet. The sandstone ringlet has red staining on both faces, which may potentially be ochre staining.
Found at Swanscombe, Kent, England.
Collection, photo and text: © John Darvill
Above: A possible carved antler object that strongly resembles a Gönnersdorf symbolic form.
This possibly modified symbolic figure appears to have been created on the inner cancellous (spongy)
section of an antler. The cortical exterior has been completely carved away down to the
cancellous centre. The possible buttock section appears to have been created on a crown
branch section (tip).
Height 89mm x 30mm width (buttocks) Found Swanscombe, Kent. UK
Found at Swanscombe, Kent, England.
Collection, photo and text: © John Darvill
A 22mm diameter bone rondelle with a central perforation.
The object is rather worn. There appears to be some evidence of decoration on one side.
Found at Swanscombe, Kent, England.
Collection, photo and text: © John Darvill
An osseous disc that resembles an Upper Palaeolithic rondelle. It has red pigment staining. There are known examples of rondelles without central perforations, but they are rare. It is therefore possible that this object is an unfinished example.
There are two opposing bulbs on the edge of the disc. The object could perhaps represent an eye.
In addition, the domed side has a central round flat area, perhaps representing an iris, as shown in the closeup at left.
Found at Swanscombe, Kent, England.
Collection, photo and text: © John Darvill
(above) Three of these Swanscombe plaques have deliberate perforated holes at the end.
In addition to this, three of the possible plaques (1, 2, 4) also have what resemble etched decorative grooves.
(left) A line drawing of a modified osseous plaque from Pinhole Cave Derbyshire, UK. apparently dating to the Upper Palaeolithic. The Pinhole plaque shares remarkable similarities with potential bone examples from Swanscombe, Kent, England.
Found at Swanscombe, Kent, England.
Collection, upper photo and text: © John Darvill
Lower line drawing: Jenkinson (2023)
Above: A potentially modified unifacial flint flake resembling a Polish, Wilczyce, symbolic Gönnersdorf form (see images below).
Found at Swanscombe, Kent, England.
Collection, photo and text: © John Darvill
Venus figures in flint from Wilczyce, Poland, circa 15 000 BP.
Photo: Boroń et al. (2012)
A seemingly human - struck unifacial flint flake resembling a possible lion or bison representation.
The maker appears to have skilfully selected a piece of flint with subtle waves and curves. By doing so, the possible backside and chest area are slightly raised giving the flake representation a 3D appearance.
Length 55 mm, height 42 mm, thickness 3 mm.
Found at Swanscombe, Kent, England.
Collection, photo and text: © John Darvill
A seemingly human - modified bone object that strongly resembles a symbolic form.
The bone object has been created on a split bone, possibly from a fibula or tibia.
The matrix side of the object has distal thinning at the top section, creating a smooth finish.
Height 80 mm.
Found at Swanscombe, Kent, England.
Collection, photo and text: © John Darvill
A modified basket style, perforated bone bead.
9mm diameter.
Found at Swanscombe, Kent, England.
Collection, photo and text: © John Darvill
A seemingly modified flint flake that has been detached from a nodule.
The flake is unifacial and strongly resembles a symbolic form.
Height 45mm.
Found at Swanscombe, Kent, England.
Collection, photo and text: © John Darvill
A possible fossil wood lignite carving resembling a Gönnersdorf/Lalinde symbolic form.
Height: 35mm.
Found at Swanscombe, Kent, England.
Collection, photo and text: © John Darvill
A seemingly modified lignite object of symbolic form.
This object shares strong similarities (see image below) with symbolic examples from Petersfel, Germany. The German examples are also made of Jet/lignite.
Height 37mm.
Found at Swanscombe, Kent, England.
Collection, photo and text: © John Darvill
Three venus figures in jet.
From Petersfels bei Engen im Hegau, circa 15 000 BP - 12 000 BP.
Photo: Don Hitchcock 2018
Source: Facsimile, Archäologisches Museum Colombischlössle, Freiburg, Germany
A possible fossil lignite carving resembling a Gönnersdorf/Lalinde symbolic form.
Height 43mm.
Found at Swanscombe, Kent, England.
Collection, photo and text: © John Darvill
A possible micro lignite carving that closely resembles a Gönnersdorf/Lalinde symbolic form.
Height 17mm.
Found at Swanscombe, Kent, England.
Collection, photo and text: © John Darvill
(Left) A seemingly modified bone object with possible red staining still attached in some areas.
With reference to the left hand image of the two sides, one side has a roughly triangular form with no equal sides, whilst the opposing side has what strongly resembles a relief carving of a Gönnersdorf/Lalinde symbolic form.
( On the right, for clarity, a depiction of the resemblance to a relief carving of a Gönnersdorf/Lalinde symbolic form as referred to by John Darvill above - Don )
Height 65mm.
Found at Swanscombe, Kent, England.
Collection, photo and text: © John Darvill
References
- Boroń T., Królik H., Kowalski T., 2012: Les figurines féminines magdaléniennes du site de Wilczyce 10 (district de Sandomierz, Pologne), in: Clottes J. (dir.) 2012, L’art pléistocène dans le monde, Actes du Congrès IFRAO, Tarascon-sur-Ariège, septembre 2010 – Symposium 'Art mobilier pléistocène'.
- Jenkinson, R.D.S., 2023: A North-Western Habitat: the Paleoethology and Colonisation of a European Peninsula (a comprehensive analysis of excavations in Pin Hole Cave, Creswell Crags), Internet Archaeology 61 (Monograph 3)1, https://doi.org/10.11141/ia.61.1
- Jennett, K., 2008: Female Figurines of the Upper Paleolithic, Texas State University, Honors Thesis presented to the Honors Committee of Texas State University-San Marcos, in partial fulfillment of the requirements for graduation in the University Honors Program by Karen Diane Jennett, San Marcos, Texas, May 2008
- White, T., 2017: Swanscombe. In: Gilbert, A.S. (eds) Encyclopedia of Geoarchaeology. Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences Series, Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-4409-0_109
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