This series explores how Hackney’s Old Stone Age (Palaeolithic) archaeology was discovered and preserved due to the rapid urban development of the late 1800s and the dedicated work of a handful of collectors.
The Opportunity
The borough witnessed rapid population increase in the 19th century, rising from just under 15,000 people in 1801 to nearly 375,000 in 1901. Former fields, grand estates, gardens and brick-pits in Clapton and Stoke Newington were transformed into suburban homes for an aspiring middle-class looking for easy access to the City of London.
In building the new homes, workmen excavated deep into the earth for foundations, basements and drains, providing a unique opportunity for interested collectors to view ancient deposits and retrieve the fossils and tools within.
The Antiquarian Collectors
At the same time as this urban development, a huge advancement of scientific knowledge of geology, evolution and archaeology saw new interest in early humans and the beginnings of research into the Old Stone Age.
Shoreditch resident Worthington George Smith was among the middle class professionals drawn to this new study of the past. He would go on to discover stone tools from the Old Stone Age in Hackney during the 1870s. These were some of the very first to be found undisturbed, exactly how they were left hundreds of thousands of years before and as sharp as on the day they were made. Within 10 years of the news of the discovery being shared, nearly a thousand artefacts had been found in the area.
The Workers
In the 1870s, study of the newly discovered Old Stone Age was dominated by members of the upper-middle class who had the wealth and leisure time to pursue archaeology. However, discoveries were dependent on the efforts of working class labourers who were working on the construction sites.
As Old Stone Age artefacts and fossils are buried deep in the ground, their discovery relied on the work, intelligence and observations of labourers to identify them during the deep excavations of local brick pits or housing developments. The workers would either share these with, or sell them to, eager collectors.
Even before their significance was known, local gravel diggers were struck by the beauty and symmetry of the ancient stone tools they discovered. Two were sold to a local pub landlord who, not knowing what they were, displayed them as ornamental objects in his tavern at 71 Glynn Road, Clapton.
Fakes and Forgeries
While some collectors actively searched for artefacts on site, many would offer to buy any discoveries from workmen digging locally. For many workmen living in poverty, a single handaxe could be worth a whole day’s wage or a week’s rent.
This encouraged some to learn to create forgeries to sell to unaware collectors. One victim was Joseph Exall Greenhill, who mistakenly purchased fake handaxes believing them to be from the Old Stone Age.
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Content for this blog featured in the exhibition ‘Hackney 300,000 BC: Meet the Neanderthal neighbours and curious creatures of the borough’s Old Stone Age’ at Hackney Museum 26 January – 29 July 2023.