Description
Genuine Flint Flake from Cornelian Bay, Scarborough
This genuine flint flake artefact was found at Cornelian Bay, Scarborough, North Yorkshire, United Kingdom, on 2 March 2010. Carefully selected for its natural geological character and lithic interest, the specimen offers collectors a tangible example of flint from one of Yorkshire’s distinctive coastal landscapes.
The listing photographs show the actual specimen you will receive, including its individual shape, colour, surface texture, fracture pattern and edge condition. Every flint flake is unique because natural variations within the stone and the direction of the original fracture produce a distinctive combination of ridges, scars and sharp-edged surfaces.
Full dimensions and scale are shown in the photographs. The artefact is supplied with a Certificate of Authenticity lifetime guarantee generic card, confirming that it is offered as a genuine specimen with recorded find information.
Artefact Type: Flint Flake
The specimen is identified as a flint flake, a detached piece of flint produced when force causes part of a larger nodule or core to break away. Flint flakes may be created naturally through weathering, coastal erosion, frost action and impact, or deliberately through human flint-knapping.
In archaeological terminology, flakes are among the most common products of stone-tool manufacture. When a prehistoric craftsperson struck a flint core with a hammerstone, antler billet or similar implement, the impact could remove a thin, sharp-edged flake. Some flakes were waste products from shaping a core or making a tool, while others were selected for immediate use because their fresh edges could perform cutting, scraping or piercing tasks.
A flake may preserve features such as a striking platform, bulb of percussion, ripple marks, dorsal ridges or previous flake scars. These characteristics can help specialists understand how the piece was detached and whether its fracture resulted from deliberate knapping or natural processes. The visible surfaces of this specimen provide an interesting study piece for collectors of British flint, lithic material and regional archaeological finds.
Flint Geology and Material Composition
Flint is a dense, fine-grained form of microcrystalline quartz, composed primarily of silica. Unlike rocks containing large visible crystals, flint consists of extremely small quartz crystals packed together within a hard, compact structure.
Much British flint formed millions of years ago inside marine chalk deposits. Silica derived from microscopic organisms and sediments became concentrated within the chalk, gradually forming nodules, irregular masses and tabular bands. Later erosion released these flints from their original geological beds and redistributed them through coastal deposits, beaches, cliffs, river gravels and glacial sediments.
Flint is especially notable for its conchoidal fracture, meaning it breaks along curved surfaces rather than following flat crystal planes. This fracture behaviour can create exceptionally sharp edges and smooth, shell-like scars. The combination of hardness, durability and predictable breakage made flint one of the most important raw materials used for stone tools throughout human prehistory.
Natural colouring can range from black and dark grey to brown, cream or pale grey, depending on mineral inclusions, geological formation and weathering. Surface exposure may also produce patination, staining or abrasion, particularly in coastal environments where stone can be affected by salt water, moving sediment and repeated contact with other rocks.
Cornelian Bay Geological Provenance
Cornelian Bay lies on the coast near Scarborough in North Yorkshire, an area shaped by marine erosion, cliff movement and the continual redistribution of beach material. Coastal locations can expose geological specimens from several different deposits, including material released from cliffs, transported by glacial activity or moved along the shoreline by waves and tides.
The recorded find location gives this flint flake strong regional interest. Specimens with specific provenance are particularly appealing to collectors because the place and date of discovery form part of the object’s documented history.
This piece was found on 2 March 2010, providing a precise modern collection record. Its Cornelian Bay provenance makes it suitable for collections focused on Scarborough, North Yorkshire geology, British coastal finds, flint specimens or lithic artefacts.
Flint Fracture and Possible Manufacture
When flint is struck, force travels through the stone in a predictable way. A controlled blow can detach a flake while creating distinctive fracture features. Prehistoric flint knappers learned to use this behaviour to produce cutting flakes, blades, scrapers, points and other practical implements.
A larger flint nodule could first be prepared as a core, after which flakes were removed in sequence. Some were modified by additional small removals known as retouch, while others were used without further shaping. Even an unmodified flake could provide a highly effective cutting edge for processing meat, plants, hide, wood or other organic materials.
Flint flakes are valuable study objects because they can preserve evidence of reduction sequences and stone-working techniques. Their ridges and scars may show where earlier pieces were removed, while their profile can record the direction in which the fracture travelled through the stone.
Collector Display and Authenticity
This genuine Cornelian Bay flint flake is suitable for collections of British geology, Yorkshire specimens, coastal finds, lithic material, archaeological study pieces and natural history objects. It can be displayed in a specimen case, educational collection, study cabinet or regional geological presentation.
The artefact has been individually chosen, and the photographs show the exact specimen supplied. Please refer to the listing images for full sizing, scale and close examination of the surface details.
A Certificate of Authenticity lifetime guarantee generic card is included with this genuine flint flake artefact from Cornelian Bay, Scarborough, North Yorkshire, found on 2 March 2010.
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