Flint mining is the process of extracting

flint Flint, occasionally flintstone, is a sedimentary cryptocrystalline form of the mineral quartz, categorized as the variety of chert that occurs in chalk or marly limestone. Flint was widely used historically to make stone tools and sta ...

from underground. Flint mines can be as simple as a pit on the surface or an area of

quarrying A quarry is a type of open-pit mine in which dimension stone, rock, construction aggregate, riprap, sand, gravel, or slate is excavated from the ground. The operation of quarries is regulated in some jurisdictions to reduce their envir ...

, or it may refer to a series of shafts and

tunnel A tunnel is an underground passageway, dug through surrounding soil, earth or rock, and enclosed except for the entrance and exit, commonly at each end. A pipeline is not a tunnel, though some recent tunnels have used immersed tube cons ...

s used to extract

. Flint has been mined since the

Palaeolithic The Paleolithic or Palaeolithic (), also called the Old Stone Age (from Greek: παλαιός ''palaios'', "old" and λίθος '' lithos'', "stone"), is a period in human prehistory that is distinguished by the original development of stone to ...

, but was most common during the

Neolithic The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is an Old World archaeological period and the final division of the Stone Age. It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide-ranging set of developments that appear to have arisen independently in several p ...

. Flint was especially valued in

prehistory Prehistory, also known as pre-literary history, is the period of human history between the use of the first stone tools by hominins 3.3 million years ago and the beginning of recorded history with the invention of writing systems. The use ...

for its use in

weaponry A weapon, arm or armament is any implement or device that can be used to deter, threaten, inflict physical damage, harm, or kill. Weapons are used to increase the efficacy and efficiency of activities such as hunting, crime, law enforcement, s ...

. Although flint is not as valuable a resource in modern times, a few flint mines remain in operation even today (for example at Miorcani).

List of flint mines

*Austria ** **"Am Feuerstein" in

Kleinwalsertal Kleinwalsertal is a valley in the Austrian province of Vorarlberg and part of the Bregenz district. It includes the municipality of Mittelberg and consists of three villages along the River Breitach. Due to the geographic location in the Allg� ...

(

Vorarlberg Vorarlberg ( , ; gsw, label= Vorarlbergisch, Vorarlbearg, , or ) is the westernmost state () of Austria. It has the second-smallest geographical area after Vienna and, although it also has the second-smallest population, it is the state with the ...

) *Belgium **The

Neolithic flint mines of Spiennes The Neolithic flint mines of Spiennes are among the largest and earliest Neolithic flint mines which survive in north-western Europe, located close to the Walloon village of Spiennes, southeast of Mons, Belgium. The mines were active during the ...

**Jandrain-Jandrenouille (

Orp-Jauche Orp-Jauche (; nl, Adorp-Geten, ; wa, Oû-Djåce) is a municipality of Wallonia located in the Belgian province of Walloon Brabant. On January 1, 2008, Orp-Jauche had a total population of 8,400. The total area is 50.50 km² which gives a pop ...

) *Denmark **Hov (near

Thisted Thisted is a town in the municipality of Thisted in the North Denmark Region of Denmark. It has a population of 13,461 (1 January 2022)Qena Qena ( ar, قنا ' , locally: ; cop, ⲕⲱⲛⲏ ''Konē'') is a city in Upper Egypt, and the capital of the Qena Governorate. Situated on the east bank of the Nile, it was known in antiquity as Kaine (Greek Καινή, meaning "new (city)"; ...

) ** Nazlet Khater (Upper Egypt) *France ** located between Caen and

Falaise, Calvados Falaise () is a commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region in northwestern France. Geography Falaise lies on the river Ante, a tributary of the river Dives, about southeast of Caen. History The area around Falaise has bee ...

** **

Le Grand-Pressigny Le Grand-Pressigny () is a commune in the Indre-et-Loire department in central France. There is a Chalcolithic flint mine located in the commune. It produced an unusual caramel-coloured stone which appears to have been highly prized across Euro ...

*Germany **Lengfeld (near

Bad Abbach Bad Abbach is a municipality in the district Kelheim, Bavaria, Germany. Due to its sulphurous springs it has the status of a spa town A spa town is a resort town based on a mineral spa (a developed mineral spring). Patrons visit spas to ...

). ** near Abensberg **Asch (near

Blaubeuren Blaubeuren () is a town in the district of Alb-Donau near Ulm in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. it had 11,963 inhabitants. Geography Geographical location The core city Blaubeuren lies at the foot of the Swabian Jura, west of Ulm. Neighborin ...

) **Baiersdorf (near

Essing Essing is a municipality in the district of Kelheim in Bavaria in Germany. It lies on the river Altmühl The Altmühl (, la, Alchmona, Alcmana, Almonus)Efringen-Kirchen Efringen-Kirchen is a municipality in the district of Lörrach in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Fortifications During World War I fortifications were built at Istein, these were destroyed at the end of the war. In 1936 plans were drawn up to tur ...

**Lousberg in Aachen ** Bottmersdorf **

Osterberg Osterberg is a municipality in the district of Neu-Ulm in Bavaria in Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and th ...

**On

Rügen Rügen (; la, Rugia, ) is Germany's largest island. It is located off the Pomeranian coast in the Baltic Sea and belongs to the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. The "gateway" to Rügen island is the Hanseatic city of Stralsund, where ...

island there are the exposed flint fields between Mukran and Prora ** Schernfeld *Great Britain **

Beer Beer is one of the oldest and the most widely consumed type of alcoholic drink in the world, and the third most popular drink overall after water and tea. It is produced by the brewing and fermentation of starches, mainly derived from ce ...

(

Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devo ...

) ** Blackpatch, West Sussex **

Grimes Graves Grime's Graves is a large Neolithic flint mining complex in Norfolk, England. It lies north east from Brandon, Suffolk in the East of England. It was worked between 2600 and 2300 BC, although production may have continued well into ...

near

Brandon Brandon may refer to: Names and people *Brandon (given name), a male given name *Brandon (surname), a surname with several different origins Places Australia *Brandon, a farm and 19th century homestead in Seaham, New South Wales *Brandon, Q ...

, close to the border between

Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the No ...

and Suffolk **

Cissbury Cissbury Ring is an biological Site of Special Scientific Interest north of Worthing in West Sussex. It is owned by the National Trust and is designated a Scheduled monument for its Neolithic flint mine and Iron Age hillfort. Cissbury R ...

** Church Hill, West Sussex ** Harrow Hill, West Sussex **

Penmaenmawr Penmaenmawr (, ) is a town and community in Conwy County Borough, Wales, which was formerly in the parish of Dwygyfylchi and the traditional county of Caernarfonshire. It is on the North Wales coast between Conwy and Llanfairfechan and was a ...

Conwy County Borough Conwy County Borough ( cy, Bwrdeistref Sirol Conwy) is a county borough in Wales. It borders Gwynedd to the west and south, and Denbighshire to the east. Other settlements in the county borough include Abergele, Betws-y-Coed, Colwyn Bay, Conwy ...

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

*Hungary ** Tata ** Szentgál *Netherlands ** ** *Pakistan **Flint quarries in Rohri Hills and Ongar ( Sindh province) *Poland **

Krzemionki Krzemionki, also Krzemionki Opatowskie (, "Opatów silica-mine"), is a Neolithic and early Bronze Age complex of flint mines for the extraction of Upper Jurassic ( Oxfordian) banded flints located about eight kilometers north-east of the Polish c ...

**Wierzbica "Zele" **Skałecznica Duża **Korycizna **Sąspów **Krunio **Borownia **Bębło **Rybniki *Romania **Outside the village of Miorcani, there is a modern flint mine ** Piatra Tomii near the village of Răcătau *Spain **Casa Montero *Switzerland **between

Olten Olten (High Alemannic: ''Oute'') is a town in the canton of Solothurn in Switzerland and capital of the district of the same name. Olten's railway station is within 30 minutes of Zürich, Basel, Bern, and Lucerne by train, and is a rail hub of ...

and

Wangen bei Olten Wangen bei Olten is a municipality in the district of Olten in the canton of Solothurn in Switzerland. Minaret controversy The construction of a six-meter (20 ft) high minaret in Wangen in 2005 led to a constitutional ban on their cons ...

Lägern The Lägern (also spelled ''Lägeren''; 866 m) is a wooded mountain of the Jura Mountains, stretching from Baden to Dielsdorf, about 15 km north-west of Zurich. The culminating point is located 1 km west of Hochwacht within the canton ...

between

Wettingen Wettingen is a residential community in the district of Baden in the Swiss canton of Aargau. With a population about 20,000, Wettingen is the second-largest municipality in the canton. Geography Wettingen is located on the right bank of the Li ...

and

Regensberg Regensberg is a municipality in the district of Dielsdorf in the canton of Zurich in Switzerland. It is located just to the west of Dielsdorf, on a ridge of the Lägern (). History Regensberg was founded as a hilltop fortified settlement ab ...

**Löwenburg ( Pleigne,

Canton of Jura The Republic and Canton of Jura (french: République et canton du Jura), less formally the Canton of Jura or Canton Jura ( , ), is the newest (founded in 1979) of the 26 Swiss cantons, located in the northwestern part of Switzerland. The capital ...

) *USA **

Alibates Flint Quarries National Monument Alibates Flint Quarries National Monument is a U.S. national monument in the state of Texas. For thousands of years, people came to the red bluffs above the Canadian River for flint, vital to their existence. Demand for the high-quality, rainbow ...

References

{{reflist

External links

*http://www.flintsource.net/ *http://www.minesdespiennes.org/ *https://web.archive.org/web/20120415063337/http://bioge.ubbcluj.ro/~otis.crandell/cart/ *http://www.britarch.ac.uk/ba/ba72/feat2.shtml
'Globalising archaeology: producing tools in the Neolithic
on Google Arts& Culture Prehistoric mines

List of flint mines

Further reading

See also

References

External links