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An arrowhead or point is the usually sharpened and hardened tip of an
arrow, which contributes a majority of the
projectile mass
Mass is an intrinsic property of a body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the quantity of matter in a physical body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physics. It was found that different atoms and different eleme ...
and is responsible for impacting and
penetrating a target, as well as to fulfill some special purposes such as
signaling.
The earliest arrowheads were made of
stone
In geology, rock (or stone) is any naturally occurring solid mass or aggregate of minerals or mineraloid matter. It is categorized by the minerals included, its Chemical compound, chemical composition, and the way in which it is formed. Rocks ...
and of organic materials; as
human civilization
A civilization (or civilisation) is any complex society characterized by the development of a state, social stratification, urbanization, and symbolic systems of communication beyond natural spoken language (namely, a writing system).
Civi ...
s progressed, other
alloy
An alloy is a mixture of chemical elements of which at least one is a metal. Unlike chemical compounds with metallic bases, an alloy will retain all the properties of a metal in the resulting material, such as electrical conductivity, ductilit ...
materials were used. Arrowheads are important
archaeological artifacts
An artifact, or artefact (see American and British English spelling differences), is a general term for an item made or given shape by humans, such as a tool or a work of art, especially an object of archaeological interest. In archaeology, the ...
; they are a subclass of
projectile point
In North American archaeological terminology, a projectile point is an object that was hafted to a weapon that was capable of being thrown or projected, such as a javelin, dart, or arrow. They are thus different from weapons presumed to have ...
s. Modern enthusiasts still "produce over one million brand-new spear and arrow points per year".
A craftman who manufactures arrowheads is called an arrowsmith.
[Paterson ''Encyclopaedia of Archery'' p. 20]
History
![Arrow-heads](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/47/Arrow-heads.JPG)
In the
Stone Age, people used sharpened bone,
flintknapped stones, flakes, and chips and bits of
rock
Rock most often refers to:
* Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids
* Rock music, a genre of popular music
Rock or Rocks may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...
as weapons and tools. Such items remained in use throughout human civilization, with new materials used as time passed. As
archaeological artifact
An artifact, or artefact (see American and British English spelling differences), is a general term for an item made or given shape by humans, such as a tool or a work of art, especially an object of archaeological interest. In archaeology, the ...
s such objects are classed as
projectile point
In North American archaeological terminology, a projectile point is an object that was hafted to a weapon that was capable of being thrown or projected, such as a javelin, dart, or arrow. They are thus different from weapons presumed to have ...
s, without specifying whether they were projected by a bow or by some other means such as throwing since the specific means of projection (the bow, the arrow shaft, the spear shaft, etc.) is found too seldom in direct association with any given point and the word "arrow" would imply a certainty about these points which simply does not exist.
Such artifacts can be found all over the world in various locations. Those that have survived are usually made of stone, primarily consisting of
flint
Flint, occasionally flintstone, is a sedimentary cryptocrystalline form of the mineral quartz, categorized as the variety of chert that occurs in chalk or marly limestone. Flint was widely used historically to make stone tools and sta ...
,
obsidian, or
chert
Chert () is a hard, fine-grained sedimentary rock composed of microcrystalline or cryptocrystalline quartz, the mineral form of silicon dioxide (SiO2). Chert is characteristically of biological origin, but may also occur inorganically as a ...
. In many excavations, bone, wooden, and metal arrowheads have also been found.
Stone projectile points dating back 64,000 years were excavated from layers of ancient sediment in
Sibudu Cave
Sibudu Cave is a rock shelter in a sandstone cliff in northern KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. It is an important Middle Stone Age site occupied, with some gaps, from years ago to years ago.
Evidence of some of the earliest examples of modern h ...
,
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...
. Examinations found traces of blood and bone residues, and
glue made from a plant-based resin that was used to fasten them on to a wooden shaft. This indicated "
cognitively demanding behavior" required to manufacture glue.
These hafted points might have been launched from bows. While "most attributes such as micro-residue distribution patterns and micro-wear will develop similarly on points used to tip spears, darts or arrows" and "explicit tests for distinctions between thrown spears and projected arrows have not yet been conducted" the researchers find "contextual support" for the use of these points on arrows: a broad range of animals was hunted, with an emphasis on taxa that prefer closed forested niches, including fast moving, terrestrial and arboreal animals. This is an argument for the use of traps, perhaps including snares. If snares were used, the use of cords and knots which would also have been adequate for the production of bows is implied. The employment of snares also demonstrates a practical understanding of the latent energy stored in bent branches, the main principle of bow construction. Cords and knots are implied by use-wear facets on perforated shell beads around 72,000 years old from Blombos. Archeologists in Louisiana have discovered that early Native Americans used Alligator gar scales as arrow heads.
"Hunting with a bow and arrow requires intricate multi-staged planning, material collection and tool preparation and implies a range of innovative social and communication skills."
Design
Arrowheads are attached to arrow shafts to be shot from a
bow; similar types of projectile points may be attached to a spear and "thrown" by means of an
atlatl
A spear-thrower, spear-throwing lever or ''atlatl'' (pronounced or ; Nahuatl ''ahtlatl'' ) is a tool that uses leverage to achieve greater velocity in dart or javelin-throwing, and includes a bearing surface which allows the user to store ene ...
(spear thrower).
The arrowhead or
projectile point
In North American archaeological terminology, a projectile point is an object that was hafted to a weapon that was capable of being thrown or projected, such as a javelin, dart, or arrow. They are thus different from weapons presumed to have ...
is the primary functional part of the arrow, and plays the largest role in determining its purpose. Some arrows may simply use a sharpened tip of the solid shaft, but it is far more common for separate arrowheads to be made, usually from metal, horn, rock, or some other hard material.
Arrowheads may be attached to the shaft with a cap, a socket
tang
Tang or TANG most often refers to:
* Tang dynasty
* Tang (drink mix)
Tang or TANG may also refer to:
Chinese states and dynasties
* Jin (Chinese state) (11th century – 376 BC), a state during the Spring and Autumn period, called Tang (唐) b ...
, or inserted into a split in the shaft and held by a process called
hafting
Hafting is a process by which an artifact, often bone, stone, or metal is attached to a ''haft'' (handle or strap). This makes the artifact more useful by allowing it to be shot (arrow), thrown by hand (spear), or used with more effective levera ...
.
[http://www.sca.org/officers/marshal/docs/marshal_handbook.pdf ] Points attached with caps are simply slid snugly over the end of the shaft, or may be held on with
hot glue. In medieval Europe, arrowheads were adhered with hide glue. Split-shaft construction involves splitting the arrow shaft lengthwise, inserting the arrowhead, and securing it using
ferrule
A ferrule (a corruption of Latin ' "small bracelet", under the influence of ' "iron") is any of a number of types of objects, generally used for fastening, joining, sealing, or reinforcement. They are often narrow circular rings made from me ...
, sinew, rope, or wire.
Modern arrowheads used for hunting come in a variety of classes and styles. Many traditionalist archers choose heads made of modern high carbon steel that closely resemble traditional stone heads (see Variants). Other classes of broadheads referred to as "mechanical" and "hybrid" are gaining popularity. Often, these heads rely on force created by passing through an animal to expand or open.
Variants
![BroadheadTip](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/04/BroadheadTip.jpg)
Arrowheads are usually separated by function:
* ''
Bodkin point
A bodkin point is a type of arrowhead. In its simplest form it is an uncomplicated squared metal spike, and was used extensively during the Middle Ages. The typical bodkin was a square-section arrowhead, generally up to long and thick at its wid ...
s'' are short, rigid points with a small cross-section. They were made of unhardened iron and may have been used for better or longer flight, or for cheaper production. It has been suggested that the bodkin came into its own as a means of penetrating armour, however limited research
has so far found no hardened bodkin points, so it appears likely that it was first designed either to extend range or as a cheaper and simpler alternative to the broadhead. In a modern test, a direct hit from a hard steel bodkin point penetrated a set of fifteenth-century chain armour made in Damascus. However, archery was minimally effective against
plate armour, which became available to knights of fairly modest means by the late 14th century.
* ''Judo points'' have spring wires extending sideways from the tip. These catch on grass and debris to prevent the arrow from being lost in the vegetation. Used for practice and for small game.
* ''Broadheads'' were used for war and are still used for hunting. Medieval broadheads could be made from steel,
sometimes with hardened edges. They usually have two to four sharp blades that cause massive
bleeding
Bleeding, hemorrhage, haemorrhage or blood loss, is blood escaping from the circulatory system from damaged blood vessels. Bleeding can occur internally, or externally either through a natural opening such as the mouth, nose, ear, urethra, vag ...
in the victim. Their function is to deliver a wide cutting edge so as to kill as quickly as possible. They are expensive, damage most targets, and are usually not used for practice. There are two main types of broadheads used by hunters: The ''fixed-blade broadhead'' and the ''mechanical broadhead'' types. While the fixed-blade broadhead keeps its blades rigid and unmovable on the broadhead at all times, the mechanical broadhead deploys its blades upon contact with the target, its blades swinging out to wound the target. "There are three requirements to making a broadhead. 1. It must be wide enough to cut through tissue to produce a quick, clean kill. 2. It must be narrow enough to penetrate well. 3. It must be of a shape that can be sharpened well."
The mechanical head flies better because it is more streamlined, but has less penetration as it uses some of the kinetic energy in the arrow to deploy its blades.
* ''Three-bladed'', ''trilobate'', or ''Scythian'' arrowheads appears in regions under influence of the
Scythians
The Scythians or Scyths, and sometimes also referred to as the Classical Scythians and the Pontic Scythians, were an ancient Eastern
* : "In modern scholarship the name 'Sakas' is reserved for the ancient tribes of northern and eastern Centra ...
and
ancient Persians
The Achaemenid Empire or Achaemenian Empire (; peo, 𐎧𐏁𐏂, , ), also called the First Persian Empire, was an ancient Iranian empire founded by Cyrus the Great in 550 BC. Based in Western Asia, it was contemporarily the largest emp ...
. It was the type normally used by the
Achaemenid army
The Achaemenid Empire or Achaemenian Empire (; peo, 𐎧𐏁𐏂, , ), also called the First Persian Empire, was an ancient Iranian empire founded by Cyrus the Great in 550 BC. Based in Western Asia, it was contemporarily the largest emp ...
.
[Delrue, Parsival. 2007. "Trilobate Arrowheads at Ed-Dur (U.A.E, Emirate of Umm Al-Qaiwain)". Arabian Archaeology and Epigraphy. 18, no. 2: 239-250.]
* ''Target points'' are bullet-shaped with a sharp point, designed to penetrate
target butts easily without causing excessive damage to them.
* ''Field points'' are similar to target points and have a distinct shoulder, so that missed outdoor shots do not become as stuck in obstacles such as tree stumps. They are also used for shooting practice by hunters, by offering similar flight characteristics and weights as broadheads, without getting lodged in target materials and causing excessive damage upon removal.
* ''Safety arrows'' are designed to be used in various forms of reenactment combat, to reduce the risk when shot at people. These arrows may have heads that are very wide or padded. In combination with bows of restricted draw weight and draw length, these heads may reduce to acceptable levels the risks of shooting arrows at suitably armoured people. The parameters will vary depending on the specific rules being used and on the levels of risk felt acceptable to the participants. For instance,
SCA combat rules require a padded head at least in diameter, with bows not exceeding and of draw for use against well-armoured individuals. The Australia/New Zealand based SCA Kingdom of Lochac use bows and much smaller safety arrow heads similar to modern rubber bird blunts for their combat archery as these more accurately simulate real arrows.
See also
*
Elf-arrow
*
Stone tool
*
Elfshot
In English folklore, elf-arrows, elf-bolts and pixie arrows were names given to discovered arrowheads of flint, used in hunting and war by the Pre-Indo-Europeans of the British Isles and of Europe generally. The name derives from the folklore be ...
*
Thunderstone (folklore)
A thunderstone is a prehistoric hand axe, stone tool, or fossil which was used as an amulet to protect a person or a building. The name derives from the ancient belief that the object was found at a place where lightning had struck.
Thunderston ...
*
Projectile point
In North American archaeological terminology, a projectile point is an object that was hafted to a weapon that was capable of being thrown or projected, such as a javelin, dart, or arrow. They are thus different from weapons presumed to have ...
*
Bodkin point
A bodkin point is a type of arrowhead. In its simplest form it is an uncomplicated squared metal spike, and was used extensively during the Middle Ages. The typical bodkin was a square-section arrowhead, generally up to long and thick at its wid ...
References
External links
*
*
{{Archery, state=expanded
American Indian relics
Archery
Hunting equipment