2500 BC to 2000 BC has been called the "Late Neolithic/Early Bronze Age" in recognition of the difficulty of exactly defining the boundary. Some archaeologists recognise a British Chalcolithic when copper was used between the 25th and the 22nd centuries BC, but others do not because production and use were on a small scale.

*2500-2000 BC: Mount Pleasant Phase, Early Bell Beaker culture: copper+tin.
*2100-1900 BC: Late Beaker: knives, tanged