_Iron chisels_ (Pl. III., figs, 1 and 2) are found on almost all floors, and were it not for noting the actual spots where they are found and the associated articles, it would be difficult to state, so closely do they resemble each other, which of them were antique and which old or modern native. This difficulty is increased when old Kafir iron-chisels and picks are found to be greatly corroded, while some of the iron tools found in positions suggesting a great antiquity are sometimes found in an almost perfect condition. The sizes of the various chisels used by the ancients on blocks in the oldest portions of the ruins, and also on the soapstone beams, are still clearly distinguishable. _Iron picks_ are found on older native floors, and these vary in make and design, and may be classified as follows:— (_a_) Double-pointed picks made of a short, thick piece of iron tapered at each end, the middle part of which is held by a short iron handle (Pl. II., fig. 11). These have also been found in old workings in both Matabeleland and Mashonaland, and especially in the Mazoe and neighbouring districts. Several of the early writers on this country state that these picks had been supplied to their native labourers by the mediæval Portuguese, but it is impossible at present to state whether this belief be correct or otherwise. Certainly these picks have been mostly found in districts once occupied by the Portuguese. There is a character in the design, class of iron used, and the make that does not suggest a native origin. (_b_) An iron pick (Pl. III., fig. 3), similar to the one shown on page 217 of Mr. Bent’s book, but in a better state of preservation, was recently found at Zimbabwe. It is almost certain that this class of pick once had wooden handles up the middle of which was a hole, and through it passed the iron bar which bound the pick and the handle firmly together. (_c_) The pick (Pl. II., fig. 11) is formed by a bar of iron which is bent back a few inches from the top, and in the front of the bend is a hole running up the centre inside the bent-back portion, and into this hole the haft of the pick is fixed. These have been found complete. All three classes of picks are found on intermediate and upper clay floors, yet the local natives affirm that they have never known them to be made, though they are aware of their purpose.