Editing Three-age system (section)

=== The tripartite system of Sir John Evans ===
In 1874 at the [[Stockholm]] meeting of the [[International Congress of Anthropology and Prehistoric Archaeology]], a suggestion was made by A. Bertrand that no distinct age of bronze had existed, that the bronze artifacts discovered were really part of the Iron Age. [[Hans Hildebrand]] in refutation pointed to two Bronze Ages and a transitional period in Scandinavia. [[John Evans (archaeologist)|John Evans]] denied any defect of continuity between the two and asserted there were three Bronze Ages, "the early, middle and late Bronze Age".<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Howorth |first=H. H. |year=1875 |title=Report of the Stockholm Meeting of the International Congress of Anthropology and Prehistoric Archaeology |journal=Journal of the Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland |location=London |publisher=AIGBI |volume=IV |pages=354–355}}</ref>

His view for the Stone Age, following Lubbock, was quite different, denying, in ''The Ancient Stone Implements'', any concept of a Middle Stone Age. In his 1881 parallel work, ''The Ancient Bronze Implements'', he affirmed and further defined the three periods, strangely enough recusing himself from his previous terminology, Early, Middle and Late Bronze Age (the current forms) in favor of "an earlier and later stage"<ref>{{harvnb|Evans|1881|p=456}}</ref> and "middle".<ref>{{harvnb|Evans|1881|p=410}}</ref> He uses Bronze Age, Bronze Period, Bronze-using Period and Bronze Civilization interchangeably. Apparently Evans was sensitive of what had gone before, retaining the terminology of the bipartite system while proposing a tripartite one. After stating a catalogue of types of bronze implements he defines his system:<ref>{{harvnb|Evans|1881|p=474}}</ref><blockquote>The Bronze Age of Britain may, therefore, be regarded as an aggregate of three stages: the first, that characterized by the flat or slightly flanged celts, and the knife-daggers ... the second, that characterized by the more heavy dagger-blades and the flanged celts and tanged spear-heads or daggers, ... and the third, by palstaves and socketed celts and the many forms of tools and weapons, ... It is in this third stage that the bronze sword and the true socketed spear-head first make their advent.</blockquote>