Stone Smoother, Picts' House, Orkney3D Model
This quartzite smoother or polishing stone, exhbits a light sheen on the flattest face. It was found in a ‘Picts’ House [Chambered tomb], Firth’, Orkney. This tomb is probably Cuween, which was informally excavated in 1888. Other artefacts with this white ‘postage stamp’ label include one labelled ‘Stoniehall, Firth, 1888’ and a grinder that matches a contemporary description of a stone tool found in the tomb. This artefact may be the ‘quartzose nodule about two inches in diameter, which had apparently been used as a hammerstone’ described in a contemporary newspaper report on the excavations.
This artefact formed part of James Walls Cursiter’s (1851-1939) extensive collection of prehistoric artefacts from Orkney and Shetland. This collection was donated to the Hunterian Museum c.1914.
L58mm, B:56.2mm, T:44.2mm. W:198g.
GLAHM B.1914.578. © Hunterian Museum
Permission to reproduce images courtesy of the Hunterian, University of Glasgow.
CC AttributionCreative Commons Attribution
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