Weapons of the Ancient World
Archaeology|May/June 2020
How people of the past developed arms to master the challenges of their time
Weapons of the Ancient World

HUNTING EQUIPMENT

Hunting is known to be an ancient practice, but just how ancient was made clear by a discovery in a coal mine outside Schoningen, in northern Germany. There, archaeologists uncovered nine wooden spears, along with the remains of several dozen butchered horses. The spears have been dated to around 300,000 years ago, meaning they were likely used by early Neanderthals. This countered the belief of some scholars that early humans were scavengers who had not yet mastered hunting.

The spears, which measure around seven feet long, were produced by experienced weapon makers who planned their hunts in advance, says archaeologist Nicholas Conard of the University of Tubingen, who oversees excavations at Schoningen. All but one spear was made from spruce trees that had grown slowly in cold conditions, producing especially hardwood. The shafts were designed to be thicker, and therefore heavier, near the front, lending them greater stability in flight, and the tips were carved slightly off-center, to avoid the soft pith at the tree trunks’ cores. “They knew exactly what they were doing,” says Conard.

هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة May/June 2020 من Archaeology.

ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.

هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة May/June 2020 من Archaeology.

ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.

المزيد من القصص من ARCHAEOLOGY مشاهدة الكل
Digs & Discoveries - A Friend For Hercules - Archaeologists discovered a finely carved head depicting Apollo, god of the sun, music, and poetry.
Archaeology

Digs & Discoveries - A Friend For Hercules - Archaeologists discovered a finely carved head depicting Apollo, god of the sun, music, and poetry.

While digging at the crossroads of the two main streets in the ancient city of Philippi in northern Greece, archaeologists discovered a finely carved head depicting Apollo, god of the sun, music, and poetry.

time-read
1 min  |
July/August 2024
Digs & Discoveries - A Fortress Sanctuary - A sprawling 2,000-year-old fortress in the Zagros Mountains of Iraqi Kurdistan appears to have included a sanctuary dedicated to the ancient Persian water goddess Anahita.
Archaeology

Digs & Discoveries - A Fortress Sanctuary - A sprawling 2,000-year-old fortress in the Zagros Mountains of Iraqi Kurdistan appears to have included a sanctuary dedicated to the ancient Persian water goddess Anahita.

A sprawling 2,000-year-old fortress in the Zagros Mountains of Iraqi Kurdistan appears to have included a sanctuary dedicated to the ancient Persian water goddess Anahita.

time-read
1 min  |
July/August 2024
Like Cats And Dogs – Archeologist fund the skeleton of a male Eurasian lynx (Lynx lynx), a notoriously shy creature.
Archaeology

Like Cats And Dogs – Archeologist fund the skeleton of a male Eurasian lynx (Lynx lynx), a notoriously shy creature.

Оn the periphery of Zamárdi, an ancient lakeshore settlement in west-central Hungary, archaeologists uncovered a nearly five-foot-deep beehive-shaped pit with the skeletons of four adult dogs buried in successive shallow layers.

time-read
1 min  |
July/August 2024
A Dynasty Born In Fire- How an upstart Maya king forged a new social order amid chaos
Archaeology

A Dynasty Born In Fire- How an upstart Maya king forged a new social order amid chaos

At the beginning of the Terminal Classic period (ca. A.D. 810-1000), many of the great kingdoms of the southern Maya lowlands-among them Tikal, Palenque, and Calakmul-were being abandoned or collapsing. For many years, scholars have assumed that most, if not all, the other kingdoms across the Maya world must have also been in steep decline.

time-read
10 mins  |
July/August 2024
Medical Malfeasance - Archaeologists uncovered two coffins during excavations of a nineteenth-century cemetery in Quebec City that provide evidence of the illicit practice of diverting corpses for the study of human anatomy.
Archaeology

Medical Malfeasance - Archaeologists uncovered two coffins during excavations of a nineteenth-century cemetery in Quebec City that provide evidence of the illicit practice of diverting corpses for the study of human anatomy.

Archaeologists uncovered two coffins during excavations of a nineteenth-century cemetery in Quebec City that provide evidence of the illicit practice of diverting corpses for the study of human anatomy. Starting in 1847, medical students were required to have practical experience studying human anatomy, but legal options to procure cadavers were limited

time-read
1 min  |
July/August 2024
RISE AND FALL OF TIWANAKU
Archaeology

RISE AND FALL OF TIWANAKU

New dating techniques are unraveling the mystery of a sacred Andean city

time-read
10 mins  |
July/August 2024
Making a Roman Emperor
Archaeology

Making a Roman Emperor

A newly discovered monumental arch in Serbia reveals a family's rise to power in the late second century A.D.

time-read
10 mins  |
July/August 2024
The Assyrian Renaissance
Archaeology

The Assyrian Renaissance

Archaeologists return to Nineveh in northern Iraq, one of the ancient world's grandest imperial capitals

time-read
10+ mins  |
July/August 2024
Java's Megalithic Mountain
Archaeology

Java's Megalithic Mountain

Across the Indonesian archipelago, people raised immense stones to honor their ancestors

time-read
8 mins  |
July/August 2024
THE SONG IN THE STONE
Archaeology

THE SONG IN THE STONE

Located in a desert gorge in southern Peru, Toro Muerto is one of the richest rock art sites in South America. It includes at least 2,600 boulders bearing petroglyphs, many featuring figures known as danzantes who appear to be dancing.

time-read
1 min  |
July/August 2024