What is flint?

       Flint is one of the various forms of silica, which is among the common materials making up the largest part of rocks. Some other forms of silica are quartz, opal, chalcedony, agate, jasper and onyx. Flint (essentially, silica with some water, a little lime, oxide of iron and, occasionally, carbon) can be grey, grayish-white, smoke-brown, brownish-black, red or yellow. It occurs as layers in other sedimentary rocks.

       Because it flakes and can easily be chipped into a sharp cutting edge, flint was used by prehistoric man to make axe heads, arrow heads, knives and other such sharp-edged implements.

        The study of implements from the Paleolithic, or Old Stone Age, and the Neolithic, or new Stone Age, has helped us understand how people lived them.

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