9000 year-old Stone Age “Swiss Army kit” found in county Wicklow.

Archaeologists have uncovered evidence of human activity from the early Mesolithic period, dating back approximately 9,000 years, in Wicklow, Ireland. The discovery was made during an archaeological dig near Blessington at the site of the Three Castles solar farm. A large pit containing a series of flint and chert artefacts, described as a Stone Age toolkit, was found buried in a layer of charcoal, suggesting these tools were deliberately deposited rather than lost.

Lawrence Dunn, the archaeologist leading the dig, explains that the tools would have been used for various everyday tasks such as cutting, sharpening, and scraping, akin to a modern Swiss Army knife. The artefacts provide a rare glimpse into the lives of nomadic hunter-gatherer groups that inhabited Ireland around 10,000 years ago, highlighting their resourcefulness in utilizing local materials for hunting and gathering.

While the site is relatively small compared to other notable archaeological finds in Ireland, its significance is amplified by evidence of continued use 4,000 years later during the later Neolithic period. The artefacts will be deposited in the National Museum of Ireland, where their future display will be determined, marking an important addition to the understanding of early human life in Wicklow.

Evidence of human activity dating back some 9,000 years has been uncovered in Wicklow for the first time in the County. An archaeological dig near Blessington discovered a number of artefacts buried in a charcoal pit on the site of the Threecastles Solar Farm. Archaeologist Laurence Dunne tells us exactly what they dug up.

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