Flat Copper Axehead
Metal first appeared in Ireland in the Bronze Age (2,400 - 600 BC) but the first metal objects from Ireland were made of copper. Copper was not abundant like flint and extracting it from rocks was difficult. The oldest copper mine in North West Europe is located at Mount Gabriel on the Mizen Peninsula in County Cork, and dates from between 1700-1500 BC. This copper axehead dates from the Early Bronze Age. It was found in soil, at a limestone quarry, at Keevagh, Quin, County Clare.
Ref: P1949:6
Early
Bronze Age Collection
National Museum of Ireland, Irish Antiquities Division Collection
Tools and
Equipment Collection
Photograph appears courtesy of the National Museum of Ireland
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