Has anyone ever made a period throw stick or done much study on their use in the Bronze and Iron Ages?
Interested and trying to start up a conversation.
Thank you,
John
I haven't, but I am really interested in the Australian aboriginal ones. My understanding is that throwsticks fell out of favour because of developments in bows and arrows and that never happened in Australia - instead they continued to develop throwsticks into their most advanced forms (such as the famous boomerang). I don't know why exactly, but maybe a kylie (a type of throwstick) is a better for taking out an emu, kangaroo, etc.? It's something I interested in but don't know much about...
| Dan Kary wrote: |
| I haven't, but I am really interested in the Australian aboriginal ones. My understanding is that throwsticks fell out of favour because of developments in bows and arrows and that never happened in Australia - instead they continued to develop throwsticks into their most advanced forms (such as the famous boomerang). I don't know why exactly, but maybe a kylie (a type of throwstick) is a better for taking out an emu, kangaroo, etc.? It's something I interested in but don't know much about... |
At the risk of being chauvinistic... i think it may have been just a lack of something more appropriate. From what i remember, the throwing sticks on Egyptian murals and the like are usually depicted in hunting scenes, where the main target are fowl and the like. If we look at what was available to aboriginals before English colonization, aside from the woomera and basic throwing spears, there's little tools that can be useful to target small game of that class.
A sling would be a better bet, but honestly i have no idea if they had reached that kind of technology, nor what kind of technological requirements the sling is usually associated with.
I remember reading a while back that Australian boomerangs could also serve as war clubs, which doesn't sound too unbelievable. A mixed use like this or a lack of better alternatives could both be reasons to stick with throwing sticks.
I'm entirely unaware of such practices existing amongst them, but it's also possible that it could be like with the Mesoamerican macuahuitl, where "less" lethality could have been desirable due to an emphasis on taking captives during warfare ?
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