finding flint?

hi, where i live its not known for natural flint deposits - do you know where i can get any from i am in staffordshire in the midlands, or do you know of any local knappers to me, thanking you, steve.

thanks for the reply and the information, seems like its harder now to find nice flint than it was 1000's of yrs ago lol

I think that's one of the great mysteries of archaeology, how easy to find and plentiful was flint in prehistory. If we can answer that we can find out so much.

Ancient people in one seem to have used it pretty sparingly, making every blade and object count, so perhaps it was hard to come by. On the other hand perhaps it was plentiful just hard to travel with, being quite heavy, so they had limited supplies on the road.

Had this old list of Flint suppliers, managed to dig it up, it's old and far from complete. But here goes.



Flint Suppliers

The Anstey Quarry Company Ltd Confirmed supplier @ £75/ton A double layer in estate boot ~300 kg	Anstey Buntingford Herts SG9 OBU	01763848843	Current number 28 Nov., 2004 Colin Edwards, Manager. ansteyquarry@hotmail.com
Codicote Quarry (sister to Anstey, above) Larger flint nodules(not checked yet)	Off M25, A1(M) to junction 6 to Welwyn and then, 1 m NW to Codicote. From Codicote, on St Albans Road, ½ m to SW, RHS before river.	08731 467 471	Mr Lynn Regis
Chris Wren Joywheel	Unit 23 Cardiff Road Watford Herts WD18 0DP	01923 211355
IJP Building Conservation Ltd	Old House Store Hampstead Farm Binfield Heath Oxon RG9 4LG	0118 969 7711
CED Ltd	728 London Road West Thurrock Grays Essex CM20 3LU	01708 867237
Hindhead Quarries	Via Heath Transport, Hyde Heath	01494 782151
H. G. Matthews Ltd	Bellingdon Brickworks Chesham Bucks HP5 2UR	01494 758212
Site 77	College Road Business Park Aston Clinton Bucks HP22 5EZ	01296 631717
Giles of Stokenchurch	Falcon Court Stokenchurch High Wycombe Bucks HP14 3RG	01494 482396
Hydraulic Lias Limes Ltd	Tout Quarry Chessils Lane Charlton Adam Somerset TA 11 7AN	01458 223179	Mortar, may not be flint
Natural Building Technologies Ltd	Cholsey Grange Ibstone High Wycombe Bucks HP14 3XT	01491 638911	Mortar, may not be flint

Thank you, much appreciated. i do alot of driving with my work so i am sure i will be able to call at one of the suppliers soon.

I've got a few more places stored somewhere. I'll also try and write something on choosing flint and how to tell if it's any good.

http://www.flintsource.net/index.html

sadly not for the UK yets, but interesting still.

One more flint supplier, knappers have bought here before apparently

http://www.rivarsandandgravel.co.uk

Was speaking to a chap who told me of a place in Selby where flint was available. Anyone know the area at all?

hi all new to the site, im normaly on BCUK making blades and stoves, i have done a little bit of knapping, the odd arrow head and such, im also after some flint to work with and Selby is just up the road from me about 40 mins, what place did you of that sells flint?????



regards.

chris...

I had been told by someone that I could just help myself to flint. Apparently down past the farmer's market, and into the industrial estate, there is flint which has been dug up by the diggers just going begging.

Always an issue, the persuit of decent flint is a bit of a chore, but when you get some new nodules it is a joy to crack them open and see what you've got! Happy hunting everyone.

well, i'm not far from staffordshire and would be a happy to trade some nodules of norfolk flint for some antler for hammers, flakers and hafts.

i spent ages trying to find a local source with no luck at all, in the end i had to track down a chalk quarry and spend most of the day driving there and back

also, may be worth considering that there is chert in derbyshire, easier than a trip to the southeast, not that i have ever worked chert

lets not forget Portland Chert in Dorset, for those who want a more interesting colour than flint. Flint scare Cumbria also has chert beds, for the flint starved more northerly of us.

Flint come form chalk beds and chert from Limestone, so if no flint in your area, check for limestone quarries.

Lack of flint? don't forget that glass will knap, and anything over 6mm thick will work. A warning though, if you thought flint was sharp, glass is sharper... It's free from any glazers, they usually have a skip of the stuff out the front!
Cover up and be careful.

[img][/img]This was my last haul of beach flint, sadly there's little of it left to play with now! Some is good flint, some is bad.

I worked a nice big lump of flint that I found in a drainage ditch in Suffolk, and, if I may say so myself, it looked good. All dark and flaw free on the basic form.

Then I started thinning it, and it turned into a pile of 'potential arrowheads'. With every blow, I kept hitting flaws and pockets of 'stuff'.

And yes, I did spent a day in Suffolk last year walking up and down the 5/6 foot deep drainage ditches at the side of some fields. Staggering back to the campsite with a couple of pounds of flint, then back into the ditch again........

[img][/img]
This lovely sight is Cromer beach in north norfolk, and yes that is all flint!

[img][/img]
Not the best quality flint in the world but sooo much to choose from.

[img][/img]I actually kissed this flint when I found it! It rings like a bell too.

So much flint, so little time........

might have to take a trip out, i will look forward to seeing how these cobbles knap, has the weather affected them or has the sea kept them in good shape.

most are flawed in some way, they have been through an ice age or two and have been bashed together by the waves, some good pieces though...