About This Project

Projectile weapons were essential to the daily lives of ancient people. Although studied by archaeologists for decades, questions and misconceptions remain about the potential of spears, darts, and arrows to incapacitate prey. This project uses an experimental approach with replica weapons, skilled users, and modern observational equipment to study the terminal ballistics (impact and penetration) of stone-tipped atlatl darts and arrows, yielding needed data about early hunting capabilities.

Ask the Scientists

What is the context of this research?

Frequently, archaeologists use concepts from firearms research, as well as laboratory methods with controlled launching mechanisms and targets like ballistics gelatin to understand ancient weapon performance. But on closer inspection these methods do not always capture the same principles that made stone-tipped spears, darts, and arrows (projectiles that are extremely different from bullets) effective for hunting large prey. Studying these weapons also requires crafting, using, and observing them under more naturalistic conditions. This project is the final phase in a larger research program to study ancient hunting weapons under such conditions, using carefully made replicas, skilled users, fresh animal carcasses, and sophisticated observational equipment.

What is the significance of this project?

Early humans across the globe had to adapt to local conditions to survive and thrive. This included developments in weapons for hunting and defense. But archaeologists are beginning to question our assumptions about ancient weapons and what they meant for human adaptation. When were weapons effective, when did they fail in either defense or meat acquisition, and how did people alter their design to compensate? Do design changes manifest in noticeable ways in the archaeological record? We are exploring the properties of ancient hunting weapon performance using a statistical approach that draws from a large sample of shots with variable reconstructed darts and arrows. The results will be useful to anyone wanting to know more about the design and efficacy of these ancient tools.

What are the goals of the project?

The project will involve an experiment using a fresh bison carcass, atlatl darts and arrows launched by skilled users (including Donny Dust), and knapped stone projectile points. This will be the sixth such experiment using a continually improving protocol. As the protocol uses high speed cameras and markings on the shafts to observe flight and impact, this allows numerous details to be captured simultaneously regarding projectile ballistics and damage to stone points and the bones they encounter. The results are useful to archaeologists for answering a number of questions, however, the immediate goal is to expand a database for finalizing a statistical analysis of dart and arrow terminal ballistics in soft tissues, allowing a better assessment of key performance variables.