sawing, and lathe-work were done by the pyramid-builders on the hardest stone with fine cutting points. He considers modern drill-cores far inferior to those discovered in Egypt. ‘By the side of the ancient work,’ he says, ‘they look wretchedly scraped and irregular; ... the fine work shows the marks of just such tools as we have only now re-invented.’[96] * * * * * _Bronze Celts._--The most common weapons or implements of bronze found in Ireland are _celts_, which have been generally classified as flat, flanged, winged, and socketed. The ordinary bronze celt is rarely more than seven inches in length, and some have been found which scarcely measure an inch and a half. * * * * * [Illustration: Fig. 1. Flat Bronze Celt--scale one-half.] [Illustration: Fig. 2. Celt with lunette-shaped edge and re-curved points.] _The Flat Celt._--The earliest type is flat and wedge-shaped, and, like the stone weapon, appears to have been fixed by the smaller end into a wooden handle. The accompanying figure (1) shows a long, narrow celt of gold-coloured bronze, ornamented on side and edges; fig. 2 is an ornamented celt with lunette-shaped edge and re-curved points. * * * * * _The Flanged or Winged Celt_ was a simple development of the latter, resulting from the necessity of affording a better hold to the weapon when fastened to a cleft handle. The flanges were produced either by hammering the edges or by original casting. It will be noted, in figures 3 and 4, that a stop-ridge runs across the handle portion of the weapon, to prevent the celt being pressed into the haft when used with force. The position and shape of the ridge vary in the gradual development of the implement, until, merged in the flanges, we have a socket. The flanges vary much in size, and the term ‘winged’ is sometimes confined to celts with wide or more projecting flanges. [Illustration: Figs. 3 and 4. Flat and Flanged Celts with Stop-ridge.] Fig. 5 has lozenge-shaped flanges or wings 1¾ inches wide; ‘the stops are but slightly developed, and must have been bedded into the sides of the handle, which appears to have passed below them’; this will be seen by the groove projecting into the cutting half of the implement. The external knob was probably intended for holding the tying in its place. Fig. 6 is a broad-winged and stop-ridged celt with sides and faces ornamented. To the flanged type of celt the name ‘Palstave,’ a word of Scandinavian origin, is generally applied. [Illustration: Figs. 5 and 6. Winged or Flanged Celts.]