Bronze Age Ax Head Discovered by Dog Walker in Forest of Dean

John Smith discovered a 3,400-year-old bronze palstave ax head while walking his dog in the Forest of Dean, England. The ax head, dating between 1400 B.C.E. and 1275 B.C.E., was found wedged in tree roots and turned over to Forestry England. Cotswold Archaeology assisted with identification and conservation, and the artifact is now at the Dean Heritage Center. The palstave ax, made of copper and tin, features a loop for attaching to a wooden handle and was used for butchering, woodworking, and status signaling. The Forest of Dean, an ancient woodland continuously forested since 1600 C.E., has been occupied since the Stone Age. In 2019, a ring cairn dating to 2500–1500 B.C.E. was found nearby. The discovery underscores the importance of archaeological context, as noted by Matt Seaver of the National Museum of Ireland.