Rights Holder: Royal Institution of Cornwall
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GOUGE
Unique ID: CORN-E9D3F1
Object type certainty: Certain
Workflow
status: Awaiting validation 
Incomplete cast copper alloy socketed gouge, rectangular in plan, lozenge-shaped in profile with a circular socket in section, with faint vertical striations preserved in the groove which are probably remnants of use (Matt Knight pers comm). The circular socketed end is broken and partly missing, with an internal diameter of 13 mm at the broken edge, and the cutting edge is worn, partly through use, with its orginal surface missing. The gouge tapers in profile from the open end to a point at the cutting edge which is curved into a semi-circle so that it can gouge out sections of wood or other materials. The surface is corroded and pitted but most of the original patina remains on both sides of the gouge. Socketed gouges are first seen in the Ewart Park phase (c.950-850 BC) of the Late Bronze Age.
Pearce (1983) illustrates similar socketed gouges from St Keverne, Cornwall on page 570, plate 9, no.75, from Blandford, Dorset on page 607, plate 46, no.348f, from Lulworth, Dorset on page 623, plate 62, no.502m, and from Stogursey, Somerset on page 649, plate 88, no.746e, which are dated from the Ewart Park phase c.950-850 BC.
Rohl & Needham (1998) illustrate a similar socketed gouge on page 136, fig.38, no.323, which is dated from the Ewart Park metalwork phase of the Late Bronze Age, c.950-850 BC.
Subsequent actions
Subsequent action after recording: Returned to finder
Chronology
Broad period: BRONZE AGE
Subperiod from: Late
Period from: BRONZE AGE
Subperiod to: Late
Period to: BRONZE AGE
Date from: Circa 950 BC
Date to: Circa 850 BC
Dimensions and weight
Quantity: 1
Length: 56 mm
Height: 16 mm
Width: 18 mm
Thickness: 2 mm
Weight: 38.5 g
Diameter: 13 mm
Discovery dates
Date(s) of discovery: Monday 1st August 1994 - Friday 31st March 1995
Personal details
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Materials and construction
Primary material: Copper alloy
Manufacture method: Cast
Completeness: Incomplete
Spatial metadata
Region: South West (European Region)County or Unitary authority: Cornwall (Unitary Authority)
District: Cornwall (Unitary Authority)
Parish or ward: Maker-with-Rame (Civil Parish)
Spatial coordinates
4 Figure: SX4250
Four figure Latitude: 50.32869288
Four figure longitude: -4.22119839
1:25K map: SX4250
1:10K map: SX40NW
Grid reference source: Generated from computer mapping software
Unmasked grid reference accurate to a 1 metre square.
References cited
| Author | Publication Year | Title | Publication Place | Publisher | Pages | Reference | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pearce, S.M. | 1983 | The Bronze Age Metalwork of South Western Britain | Oxford | British Archaeological Reports | pp.570, 607, 623, & 649, plates 9, 46, 62 & 88 | nos.75, 348f, 502m, 746e | |
| Rohl, B. and Needham, S.P. | 1998 | The Circulation of Metal in the British Bronze Age: The Application of Lead Isotope Analysis | London | British Museum Press | p.136, fig.38 | no.323 |
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Timeline of associated dates
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