Family find 'exceedingly rare' Stone Age hand axe

The Harrison family with friend Laura, tour guide Martin Simpson, and the prehistoric axe head

An "incredible discovery" and a "chance finding" is how a family have described uncovering a prehistoric hand axe.

Mel Harrison picked up the hand-sized flintstone which tour guide Martin Simpson immediately recognised as a Stone Age implement last Wednesday at Brook Bay, Newport on the Isle of Wight.

Ms Harrison was joined on the walk by her husband Tony, her friend Laura and "keen fossil hunters" Jack and Charlie both aged nine.

She said: "It's incredible to think that this stone tool was made between 250,000-600,000 years ago and has lain undiscovered all this time."

The flintstone was authenticated by Dr Ferrero, the Isle of Wight Finds Liaisons Officer, who confirmed the stone tool was "a Palaeolithic or pre-Palaeolithic hand axe perfectly intact and could possibly be the oldest to be found on the island".

Mr Simpson, from Island Gems Fossil Trip, has been working on the island for 40 years and said "it had the right look and feel about it".

He explained "these finds are exceedingly rare and emanate from a time when the island was joined to the mainland".

"The coastal erosion in this case is actually doing some good by uncovering rare treasures," he added.

Ms Harrison said the find was the "highlight" of the trip.

The hand axe was put next to a 50p piece for scale