Glasgow archaeologist reunites finder with remarkable Bronze Age arrowhead
Published: 31 March 2026
Archaeologist Dr Kenny Brophy has helped bring Allan Forrest and his remarkable Bronze Age arrowhead he found in 1970 back together after 56 years.
When East Kilbride schoolboy Allan Forrest uncovered a Bronze Age arrowhead in 1970 he could never have imagined he would hold it again more than half a century later.
That reunion only became possible thanks to the work of archaeologist Dr Kenny Brophy from the University of Glasgow who helped bring Allan and his remarkable find back together after 56 years.
Dr Brophy had been contacted by members of the East Kilbride Archery Club who had discovered that the arrowhead featured in their kit design was based on an artefact once found by two local schoolboys.
By coincidence one of those boys was Allan who had joined the club during the pandemic without knowing the logo’s origin. Dr Brophy met with him, viewed the letters and cuttings he still had from the time and arranged access to the object through Glasgow Life so it could be scanned and studied.
Speaking about the reunion, Dr Brophy, a Senior Lecturer in Archaeology at the School of Humanities | Sgoil nan Daonnachdan, said: “It is lovely to be able to bring Allan and the arrowhead together again. This is a rare chance to reconnect someone with an object that shaped their life as a young person. Finds like this show that places such as East Kilbride have deep prehistoric roots and that the people who lived there were skilled toolmakers and hunters. It also reminds us that prehistory can have a magical effect on people’s lives today.”
Access to the arrowhead was arranged by Glasgow Life, who hold the item in their collection and 3D scanning work was undertaken by University of Glasgow archaeology student Rob Ferro.
Allan was reunited with the arrowhead during the recent 3D scanning session and reflected on the moment with The Herald.
He told journalist Paul English that seeing it again brought back vivid memories from 1970 and said it was strange to hold something that had been part of his childhood and had now returned to him after so long.
Readers can explore Allan’s full story in The Herald’s feature - https://www.heraldscotland.com/life_style/25952723.man-reunited-4-000-year-old-arrowhead-found-boy/
First published: 31 March 2026