10,000-yr-old spear found at St Pat site

A TINY spear dropped by a prehistoric “hunter gatherer” 10,000 years ago is the latest dramatic discovery on a famous Co Down hillside.

The needle, still sharp despite its Stone Age roots, has stunned archaeologists at an excavation dig in Downpatrick that is expected to make its own history because of “significant findings”.

The Queen’s University team confirmed the “microlith” is “the earliest evidence” for people living in the historic area.

It follows the find of 12 medieval skeletons in the same Down Cathedral grounds within metres of St Patrick’s reputed grave.