Tooth from a woolly mammoth from gravel pits at Islip, Northamptonshire
This mammoth tooth was found in a gravel pit at Islip on the Drayton estate and donated by S. G. Stopford-Sackville to Northampton Museum and Art Gallery and is evidence that woolly mammoths roamed around Northamptonshire, along with woolly rhinos, bison, and reindeer, as recently as 11,700 years ago.
The ridges of the tooth helped the mammoth to grind up coarse vegetation and make it easier to digest. Mammoths lived off grasses and shrubs which grew in the cold conditions of the last glacial period in Britain. They had six sets of teeth throughout their lifetime, each new tooth being larger and having more ridges than the one before to support their growing appetite. They had just four teeth at one time, two on the top and two on the bottom.
During the Pleistocene Era, or Great Ice Age, mammoths adapted to colder conditions by growing thick woolly coats and glands on their skin that helped repel water. They had smaller ears and tails, reducing the loss of body heat, and lumps on their back which may have stored fat during food shortages. In the same era, Homo sapiens (modern humans) spread throughout the world; they hunted woolly mammoths for their fur, meat, and ivory, but it is unclear whether they were hunted into extinction, or if other factors such as warming climates and new diseases played a part in their demise.
Number 5 of the objects selected for the A History of Northamptonshire in 100 Objects Exhibition 2025
Northamptonshire’s ironstone was formed from iron-rich sediments in the Jurassic period. Quarried since Roman times, ironstone has shaped our landscape, fuelled the county's industry and built our houses.
This screw pine fossil is a rare type specimen. Parts of Jurassic Northamptonshire were submerged in a shallow warm sea and tropical plants thrived on the nearby land.
© NMAG
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NMAG
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NMAG
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NMAG
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NMAG