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Stone Age Elephant Remains Found (England, Slain By Humans)
BBC ^ | 6-21-2004

Posted on 06/21/2004 5:37:15 PM PDT by blam

Stone Age elephant remains found

The skeleton was found at the site of a new station

Construction work on the Channel Tunnel Rail Link (CTRL) in Kent has unearthed the 400,000-year-old remains of an elephant. The skeleton was found on the site of the new Ebbsfleet station, an area thought to be an early Stone Age site.

Bones from other large animals, including rhinoceros, buffalo and wild horses, have also been found nearby.

The remains were preserved in muddy sediment near what was once the edge of a small lake, a spokesman said.

The elephant, which has been identified as a straight-tusked Palaeoloxodon antiquus, would have been twice the size of the largest modern African elephant.

The skeleton was also found with a number of flint tools surrounding it, indicating that it was probably slaughtered by humans.

Flint tools

Dr Francis Wenban-Smith of the University of Southampton, who made the discovery, said: "Only a handful of other elephant remains have been found in Britain and none of these give any indication of human exploitation.

"It is hard to imagine early humans successfully hunting a healthy specimen, but if it was already trapped in the bog, it could have been killed by early humans with wooden spears and then butchered for its meat with flint tools."

We thought we had found everything but it seems the best has been saved for last

Helen Glass

The archaeological investigation is being carried out by Oxford Archaeology, on behalf of CTRL project managers Rail Link Engineering (RLE) and its client Union Railways.

Helen Glass of RLE said: "During pre-construction investigations across the Ebbsfleet Valley we found an Anglo-Saxon mill, as well as the remains of a Roman town and villa complex.

"We thought we had found everything, but it seems the best has been saved for last."


TOPICS: News/Current Events; United Kingdom
KEYWORDS: age; britishisles; cryptozoology; dietandcuisine; doggerland; elephant; found; ggg; godsgravesglyphs; homoheidelbergensis; neandertal; neandertals; neanderthal; neanderthals; palaeoloxodon; remains; stone; stoneage; unitedkingdom
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To: Kaisersrsic
Stone Age elephant remains found.

They aren't sure for how much longer, though.

21 posted on 06/21/2004 6:17:13 PM PDT by secretagent
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To: motife
Extinct Humans
22 posted on 06/21/2004 6:20:22 PM PDT by blam
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To: rintense

Maybe Bush has some blame, but I'm sure that Reagan's policies were also an issue.


23 posted on 06/21/2004 6:23:05 PM PDT by Dimensio (Join the Monthly Internet Flash Mob: http://tinyurl.com/3xj9m)
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To: edwin hubble
>>The skeleton was also found with a number of flint tools surrounding it, indicating that it was probably slaughtered by humans.

Ok, how about this: the skeleton is 400k years old, but early people found it dead later. Like those mammoths that cropped up in Siberia, fresh enough to eat. Maybe there was a warm spell 100k years ago and humans spotted these big critters in the ice, then dug into the "freezer" for easy, pre-killed, fast food.

24 posted on 06/21/2004 6:52:29 PM PDT by Graymatter (Let's issue a new $40 bill to honor our 40th president)
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To: Sabertooth
The elephant, which has been identified as a straight-tusked Palaeoloxodon antiquus, would have been twice the size of the largest modern African elephant.

Could early humans have killed such huge animals with wooden spears and flint tools? It seems hard to believe.

25 posted on 06/21/2004 7:44:56 PM PDT by Victoria Delsoul ("In answer to what we promised, the infidel got his fair treatment"Al-Qaeda to wife tearful pleading)
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To: blam
Sometimes I also see elephants near railroad stations. Funny, that... ;-)


26 posted on 06/21/2004 9:07:39 PM PDT by SteveH
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To: Sabertooth
Do you know how you can tell when elephants have been making love in your front yard?

Well, there is garbage all over the place and the trash can liners are missing.

27 posted on 06/21/2004 10:58:44 PM PDT by capitan_refugio
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To: Sabertooth

Well, that's a handsome critter. Clearly more related to the Indian than the African.

Can't imagine how you kill one without recourse to gunpowder or even crossbows.


28 posted on 06/22/2004 4:39:14 PM PDT by VadeRetro
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To: Sabertooth

I bet these is mighty good eatin'

29 posted on 06/24/2004 9:30:09 PM PDT by Rudder
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To: BushMeister

Those are curve-tusked Palaeoloxodon antiquus. Don't you know anything? ;)


30 posted on 06/24/2004 9:33:26 PM PDT by Liberal Classic (This dog bite me)
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To: VadeRetro

I understand that some of the primitive hunters would sneak up and cut a leg tendon or two and jumbo was immobilized.

There is a full (fossil) skeleton of a spoonbill elephant at the Milwaukee museum. The lower jaw is a big long spoon.


31 posted on 06/24/2004 10:05:49 PM PDT by Cold Heart
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To: blam
The elephant, which has been identified as a straight-tusked Palaeoloxodon antiquus, would have been twice the size of the largest modern African elephant.

Whoa!

32 posted on 06/24/2004 10:15:03 PM PDT by my_pointy_head_is_sharp
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To: Cold Heart
I understand that some of the primitive hunters would sneak up and cut a leg tendon or two and jumbo was immobilized.

With a career like that, you don't ask about the retirement plan.

33 posted on 06/25/2004 6:03:25 AM PDT by VadeRetro
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To: blam
A Blast from the Past.

To all -- please ping me to other topics which are appropriate for the GGG list. Thanks.
Please FREEPMAIL me if you want on or off the
"Gods, Graves, Glyphs" PING list or GGG weekly digest
-- Archaeology/Anthropology/Ancient Cultures/Artifacts/Antiquities, etc.
Gods, Graves, Glyphs (alpha order)

34 posted on 08/09/2006 10:50:45 PM PDT by SunkenCiv (updated my FR profile on Thursday, August 10, 2006. https://secure.freerepublic.com/donate/)
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