Archaeologists have unlocked the secrets of a “remarkable” 500,000-year-old elephant bone hammer which they say is the oldest of its kind in Europe.

The 11-centimetre-long fragment was first uncovered at a dig in Boxgrove, near Chichester in West Sussex, in the 1990s, but its significance was not recognised until much more recently.

Researchers from University College London (UCL) and the Natural History Museum now say the piece of bone bears marks that indicate it was “intentionally shaped” for use as a tool – making it the oldest implement made of elephant bone in the continent.

Archaeologists said the tool bears ‘distinctive’ marks that suggest it was used as a hammer (Jonathan Jackson / The Natural H)

Lead author Simon Parfitt said that elephants and mammoths were “uncommon” in prehistoric England, suggesting the fragment was a “tool of considerable value”.

He added the “remarkable” discovery showcases the “ingenuity and resourcefulness” of the prehistoric community that fashioned it.

“They possessed, not only a deep knowledge of the local materials around them, but also a sophisticated understanding of how to craft highly refined stone tools,” he continued. “Elephant bone would have been a rare but highly useful resource, and it’s likely this was a tool of considerable value.”

Archaeologists at the dig site in 1995 (University College London/Natural History Museum)

The team used 3D scanning methods and electron microscopes to analyse the surface of the bone fragment, revealing distinctive notches and marks. Researchers said he tool was used as a kind of hammer by its ancient owner, who likely would have been aware that elephant bone is a particularly strong material.

They believe the bone tool served as a “retoucher,” used to strike the edges of dulled stone tools to detach flakes to restore their shape and sharpness, a process known as “knapping.”

Co-author Dr Silvia Bello, Merit Researcher at the Natural History Museum, said: “Our ancient ancestors were sophisticated in their use of tools. Collecting and shaping an elephant bone fragment and then using it on multiple occasions to shape and sharpen stone tools shows an advanced level of complex thinking and abstract thought.

“They were resourceful gatherers of available materials, and savvy about how best to use them.”

It comes after researchers unearthed what could be the earliest known use of poison-laced weapons by human hunters in South Africa.

Scientists identified traces of poison from the South African plant gifbol on arrowheads dating to about 60,000 years ago, making it the oldest known arrow poison in the world to date.

The findings reveal that prehistoric people in southern Africa had already developed advanced knowledge of toxic substances and how they could be used for hunting.