Norfolk Heritage Explorer

Location

Full description

Various Palaeolithic finds in museum collections recorded as being found at "Weeting" but otherwise unprovenanced. The precise locations of these discoveries are not known. It is possible that some were from the Broomhill area, although it should be noted that this was a separate parish at the time when these objects were most likely found. See NHER 5641 for details of unprovenanced material from Broomhill, and NHER 5642 and NHER 5643 for information on the two pits in this area known to have produced Palaeolithic material. It is also entirely possible that these finds were indeed from within the former parish of Weeting itself (now part of Weeting with Broomhill parish).

Roe (S1) lists the following unprovenanced objects from Weeting:
4 handaxes.
2 unretouched flakes.
These are recorded as being held by the British Museum, the Moyse's Hall Museum (Bury St Edmunds) the Cambridge University Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, Norwich Castle Museum (NCM) and the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford.
Information from (S2). These finds are also noted on (S3).

Norwich Castle Museum:
The unprovenanced Weeting material in the NCM includes a handaxe that was transferred from the Moyse's Hall Museum (Bury St Edmunds) in 1967 (NWHCM : 1967.215). This is presumably one of the handaxes listed in (S1).

The Parrott Collection, former on loan to the NCM (NWHCM : 1961.142.bulk : A) includes 26 handaxes which may have come from the Weeting area, this being where R. F. Parrott collected most of his finds. These handaxes were noted by Wymer (S4) in his discussion of Broomhill Ballast Pit site (NHER 5642), although he felt that the form and condition of these objects suggested they were most probably from another site, possibly Warren Hill, Mildenhall. The bulk of the Parrott Collection is now believed to be housed at Weeting Primary School.

The NCM's H. H. Halls collection includes a potentially Palaeolithic flint flake that was found at a location in Weeting that Halls designated his 'Site 41', the location of which is unknown (NWHCM : 1924.83.41). The flake is marked "probably Bromehill". See NHER 5590 for information on the other finds recovered at this site.

An ovate biface from Weeting in the NCM's T. F. Newnam collection has also been identified as a potentially Palaeolithic implement (NWHCM : 1950.114.10).

The S. S. George Collection in the NCM (NWHCM : 1963.120.30) also includes a collection of 10 Palaeolithic implements that are recorded as being "possibly from the Broomhill site" (NHER 5641). The objects themselves are however simply marked "Weeting". It is unclear whether Roe (S1) and Wymer (S5) included these in their totals for Broomhill. Wymer (S5) notes that the form and condition of this small assemblage suggests it may not be from the Broomhill area.

Ashmolean Museum:
This museum holds a single handaxe from Weeting (AN1928.166). This is presumably one of the handaxes listed in (S1).

Moyse's Hall Museum:
In (S5) Roe records that the Moyse's Hall Museum holds an unprovenanced bout coupé handaxe from Weeting. Handaxes of this type are generally seen as associated with Late Middle Palaeolithic Neanderthal activity. This implement is also noted as a possible Middle Palaeolithic handaxe in (S6), although it is noted that it "...cannot be regarded as an entirely typical bout coupé".
This is presumably one of the handaxes listed in (S1) but it is unclear at present whether it is also the handaxe transferred to the Norwich Castle Museum in 1967 (see above).

British Museum:
Several Palaeolithic flakes in the British Museum labelled "from the brick pit" formerly detailed under this record by E. Rose (NLA) are now recorded under NHER 5643.

The above finds are also noted in (S7) and (S8).

P. Watkins (HES), 20 May 2013.

Monument Types

• FINDSPOT (Lower Palaeolithic to Middle Palaeolithic - 1000000 BC to 40001 BC)

Associated Finds

• FLAKE (Lower Palaeolithic to Middle Palaeolithic - 500000 BC to 40001 BC)
• FLAKE (Lower Palaeolithic to Middle Palaeolithic - 500000 BC to 40001 BC)
• HANDAXE (Lower Palaeolithic to Middle Palaeolithic - 500000 BC to 40001 BC)
• HANDAXE (Lower Palaeolithic to Middle Palaeolithic - 500000 BC to 40001 BC)
• HANDAXE (Lower Palaeolithic to Middle Palaeolithic - 500000 BC to 40001 BC)
• HANDAXE (Lower Palaeolithic to Middle Palaeolithic - 500000 BC to 40001 BC)
• HANDAXE? (Lower Palaeolithic to Middle Palaeolithic - 500000 BC to 40001 BC)
• LITHIC IMPLEMENT (Lower Palaeolithic to Middle Palaeolithic - 500000 BC to 40001 BC)
• HANDAXE (Middle Palaeolithic - 150000 BC? to 40001 BC)

Protected Status - none

Sources and further reading

Related records - none

Find out more...

• Parish Summary: Weeting with Broomhill (Parish Summary)