An eolith (from Greek "eos", dawn, and "lithos", stone) is a chipped flint nodule. Eoliths were once thought to have been artefacts, the earliest stone tools, but are now believed to be naturally produced by geological processes such as glaciation. Pebble beach made up of flint nodules eroded out of the nearby chalk cliffs, Cape Arkona, Rügen Flint (or flintstone) is a hard, sedimentary cryptocrystalline silica rock with a glassy appearance. ... A nodule describes an aggregation of similar cells or particles in a number of scientific fields: In medicine it refers to a small aggregation of cells. ... Geology (from Greek γη- (ge-, the earth) and λογος (logos, word, reason)) is the science and study of the Earth, its composition, structure, physical properties, history and the processes that shape it. ... Glaciation, often called an ice age, is a geological phenomenon in which massive ice sheets form in the Arctic and Antarctic and advance toward the equator. ...

The first eoliths were collected in Kent by Benjamin Harrison, and amateur naturalist and archaeologist, in 1885 (though the name "eolith" wasn't coined until 1892, by J. Allen Browne). Harrison's discoveries were published by Sir Joseph Prestwich in 1891, and eoliths were generally accepted to have been crudely made tools, dating from the Pliocene. Further discoveries of eoliths in the early 20th century – in East Anglia by J. Reid Moir and in continental Europe by A. Rutot and H. Klaatsch – were taken to be evidence of human habitation of those areas before the oldest known fossils. Indeed, the English finds helped to secure acceptance of the hoax remains of Piltdown man. Kent is a county in England, south-east of London. ... -1... Archaeology or archeology (from the Greek words αρχαίος = ancient and λόγος = word/speech/discourse) is the study of human cultures through the recovery, documentation and analysis of material remains and environmental data, including architecture, artifacts, biofacts, human remains, and landscapes. ... 1885 (MDCCCLXXXV) is a common year starting on Thursday. ... 1892 (MDCCCXCII) was a leap year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... Joseph Prestwich (12 March 1812 - June 23, 1896) was a British geologist and businessman, known as an expert on the Tertiary Period and for having confirmed the findings of Boucher de Perthes. ... 1891 (MDCCCXCI) was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... The Pliocene epoch (formerly Pleiocene) is the period in the geologic timescale that extends from 5. ... (19th century - 20th century - 21st century - more centuries) Decades: 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s As a means of recording the passage of time, the 20th century was that century which lasted from 1901–2000 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar (1900–1999 in the... Norfolk and Suffolk, the core area of East Anglia. ... For other uses, see Europe (disambiguation). ... A fossil Ammonite Fossils (from Latin fossus, literally having been dug up) are the mineralized or otherwise preserved remains or traces (such as footprints) of animals, plants, and other organisms. ... Royal motto (French): Dieu et mon droit (Translated: God and my right) Englands location within the British Isles Official language English de facto Capital London de facto Largest city London Area – Total Ranked 1st UK 130,395 km² Population – Total (mid-2004) – Total (2001 Census) – Density Ranked 1st UK... Piltdown Man (Eoanthropus dawsoni) was a fraud which was perpetrated, possibly by Charles Dawson and/or others, on paleontologists from November 1912 until its exposure in 1953. ...

Because eoliths were so crude, concern began to be raised that they were indistinguishable from the natural processes or erosion. M. Boule, a French archaeologist, published an argument against the artifactual status of eoliths in 1905, and S. Hazzledine Warren provided confirmation of Boule's view after carrying out experiments on flints. Severe soil erosion in a wheat field near Washington State University, USA. Erosion is the displacement of solids (soil, mud, rock, and other particles) by the agents of wind, water, ice, movement in response to gravity, or living organisms (in the case of bioerosion). ...

Although the debate continued for about three decades, more and more evidence was discovered that suggested a purely natural origin for eoliths. This, together with the discovery of genuine late-Pliocene tools in Africa (the Olduwan tools), made support for the artefact theory difficult to sustain. A satellite composite image of Africa Africa is the worlds second-largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. ... Olduwan, earlier spelled Oldowan or sometimes Oldawan, is an anthropological designation for an industry of stone tools used by prehistoric hominids of the Lower Paleolithic. ...

Source

• Terry Harrison, "Eoliths", in Encyclopedia of Anthropology ed. H. James Birx (2006, SAGE Publications; ISBN 0-7619-3029-9)