File:Bronze age blade (front, profile, reverse (FindID 206934).jpg

English: An incomplete bronze age copper alloy tanged knife. The external edges of the tang are incomplete. There is a circular rivet hole in the tang, approximately 4mm in diameter, which is also incomplete. There are striations across one side of the tang, transverse to the orientation of the blade. In profile, the tang expands in thickness towards the blade. There are curved incisions at the edges of the knife, between the tang and the blade, visible when the object is viewed in plan. A midrib runs down both sides of the blade, flanked by shallow and uneven voids. The blade is broadly lozenge shaped in section, becoming more lentoid towards the broken tip. The blade surface is rather uneven with depressions, particularly at either side of the midrib, which are probably hammer marks. There are also narrow shallow striations. The cutting edges and the blade tip are missing.

The maximum dimensions of the knife are 53.2mm long, 18.9mm wide and 3.4mm thick (just above the break on the blade). The knife weighs 11.72g. It has light to dark green patina.

The knife is similar to one illustrated in “Bronze Age Metalwork in Salisbury Museum” (Moore and Rowlands, 1972, accession number 169/1946, plate XVI, no 88 and p.66) possibly from the Wyle Valley. This object has not been dated. A knife from the Reach Fen Hoard, Cambridgeshire is also similar (Ashmolean Museum accession number 1927.2466, see Smith (ed.) 1956, card GB. 17 3 (3), object 43). The Reach Fen Hoard has been dated to the 8th century BC (within the Late Bronze Age) (see Smith (ed.) 1956, card GB. 17 3 (1))

A number of broadly similar knives have been recorded under the Portable Antiquities Scheme (e.g. see NCL-F3D0E3, BH-C79921, LVPL656, BH-9EC2B8). Where dates have been suggested, these are generally Middle Bronze Age (1500BC to 1150BC) to Late Bronze Age (1150BC to 800BC), and this is the most likely date range for this object.