Chertsey Bronze Age socketed axe

The late Bronze Age socketed axe head from around 800-600 BC was a unique discovery that changed archaeologists’ thinking.

Chertsey Museum Bronze Age hafted axe
Copyright: Image courtesy of Brian Wood

Prior to its discovery in 1985, it was thought that handles of late Bronze Age axe heads were made from one piece of L-shaped wood, such as a gnarled tree-root or the point where a branch joins the main trunk.

Chertsey Museum’s hafted axe head is known as a Ewart Park, looped socketed axe head. It is cast in bronze and was found complete with its jointed wooden haft or handle made up of two pieces: a horizontal haft made of oak to give the tool strength, and a vertical haft made of ash for flexibility.