MP Gallery - Warlingham, Surrey, England -Hawk, Sline's Oak

Despite insecure dating, OriginsNet presents these Surrey materials--identified, collected and conserved by Ron Williams--because they have quite stunning artistic qualities.

Dating: Surrey sites are presented though their dating is problematic. Hawk (BFR Camp) and Sline's Oak are surface sites in Warlingham, Surrey, England, on the North Downs. Based on artifacts, Ron Williams and Jan Evert Musch argue that the site is mixed Upper Paleolithic, Epipaleolithic and Mesolithic.

A sample of tools from the Slines Oaks and Worms Heath areas west and north of HW/Pit Dip at the East Surrey Museum is catalogued in Field, D., Ketteringham, L., Nicolaysen, P., Waters, K. and Winser, K. (1990). Surrey Archaeological Collections 80:133-145. They note that an excavation at Slines Oak produced stratified Mesolithic flints. They examined over 1500 objects, which they identify as mostly Mesolithic or Neolithic flake and blade cores, flakes, blades and core tools. They illustrate some seventy core tools, primarily Mesolithic or Neolithic axes, adzes and preforms. They do acknowledge one biface (handaxe)(#75), "a remnant of an earlier epoch" with no further elaboration. They seem to have overlooked among the core tools illustrated what appear to be a typical Middle Paleolithic (Acheulian Tradition) bout coup biface (#16) and two other bifaces (#33, #54).

Photo © Ron Williams, collected by Ron Williams, or as otherwise noted. The site is documented in Williams, R. (1994). Warlingham, an open air-art gallery of "visual imagey". Archaeologische Berichten 22 (Elst, NL); Williams, R. (1987). Beestachtig en Beregoed (II): Steentijdtradities en rituele vuursteenskulpturen van Surrey, Engeland door Ron Williams. Archaeologische Berichten 18:13-38 (Elst, NL).

Comment (James Harrod): In contrast to the Early Paleolithic and Middle Paleolithic flint sculptures, with their respective symbolisms--i.e., for EP, female birth giver, human head, animal, and geometric (biface) and for MP, combination sculptures representing a 'mother-of-animals' deity and totemic alliances--these flint sculptures appear to represent typical Upper Paleolithic spiritual themes, including so-called 'Venus' figurines and zoomorphs.