Crossrail’s lead archaeologist Jay Carver holding a hammer stone which is among the first Bronze Age finds uncovered during the £14.8 billion rail project.

The discoveries, uncovered at the Plumstead tunnel entrance site in East London (not far from Belmarsh Prison), also included two wooden stakes that may have been cut by early hunters with an axe and which  may have been used in the building of a timber path, part of a network which allowed hunters to access wetland areas about 3,500 years ago.

“Although we haven’t identified an actual track way yet, the timbers are similar to those used to make the track ways and certainly show that people were in the area exploiting the woodland,” says Mr Carver. “This is a promising find as we continue our search for evidence of a Bronze Age transport route along where London’s newest railway will run.”

Previous objects found at Crossrail project sites include human bones from the medieval period, a find of rare amber and a piece from a mammoth’s jaw bone.

The latest finds, which are now being examined by Museum of London Archaeology, were made as a month long exhibition opens at Crossrail’s Tottenham Court Road Visitor Information Centre (16-18 St Giles High Street), displaying previous objects found during the project.

Meanwhile, as part of the exhibition, Mr Carver will also host a Q&A session on Twitter (#BisontoBedlam) today between 2pm and 9pm during which he will answer questions on Crossrail’s archaeology programme and the exhibition.

Crossrail, Europe’s largest construction project, will see the construction of a new rail link running along a 73 mile route across the city.

For more on Crossrail, see www.crossrail.co.uk. PICTURE: Courtesy of Crossrail.