The axe is approximately 100mm long and was formed from a brown piece of quartzite. It would have been used by members of the pre-human species Homo heidelbergensis, but its rounded edges and manufacture from a material not present locally suggest that it was not found in situ, but was transported to its find site by the action of glacial meltwater. The find was documented and illustrated by the archaeologist John Evans in his book Ancient Stone Implements of Britain in 1897, who commented that "the question now arises whether the assumed absence of Palaeolithic implements over this area may not be due to their not having yet been found, and not to their non-existence".