Prehistoric flint mine and part of a round barrow cemetery at Blackpatch, 400m north east of Myrtle Grove Farm, Prehistoric flint mine and round barrow cemetery in Patching, England
The prehistoric flint mine at Blackpatch is a mining complex with over 60 infilled shafts scattered across the southwest slope of the hill. The shafts reach diameters of around 6 meters (20 feet) and connect underground through galleries that followed seams of flint.
The site developed during the Stone Age when people mined flint from deep underground layers. Excavations conducted from 1922 to 1932 uncovered seven shafts and revealed the scale of the underground mining operation.
The round barrows here reveal how prehistoric communities buried their dead in structured cemeteries. Three of these burial mounds were placed directly over abandoned mining shafts, linking the site's mining past to its role as a sacred burial ground.
The site is a protected monument located 400 meters northeast of Myrtle Grove Farm in the countryside. Visitors should be aware that most shaft entrances are now filled with earth and covered in vegetation, making the site's features less obvious underfoot.
An antler pick discovered in one of the shafts dates to around 3000 BC and demonstrates what tools miners used for extracting flint. This find shows how early people adapted natural materials to develop practical mining techniques.
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