***Disclaimer: the below summary of the objects class and of the final lecture on archery is meant as a supplement to study - I am completely incapable of following the presentation order of the typical materials class, or of writing as fast as the data was usually presented, and so there may be obvious gaps in the summary below. However, keep in mind the findspot and date was often not detailed for these pieces.

OBJECT SUMMARY:

Candle Stick, Bronze

Copper-arsonic axehead, Early Bronze Age

Duck billed axe, tin

Medeval horse bit – brass (copper +zinc)

Astrolobe, 18th cen. Brass + acrylics paint

Sword – steel blade copper hilt. Copper allows gold to be applied. Curved blade: curved blades were developed following the shedding of heavy armor (which itself followed the advent of gun use)

Copper pot – rubbed with tin for shine. Medeval period.

Gilded copper cup – Turkish (Ottoman) Copper gilded with gold

Cast Bronze Mirror - polished silver face

Syrian dagger 18th cen. Damascus steel blade. high carbon steel. cattle horn grip. Scarbbard – wooden core leather cover.

Bedouin Silver – one is heavier than the other – the heavier the weight the higher the silver content

Capenters Adze (Jerusalem) use to make furniture

Jersusalem axes –

On right: Medieval saddle axe (hidden in saddle customarily) important weapon for a Muslim warrior; beautifully made with brass inlay

On left: Asymmetrical axe blade from later period.

Warhammer – used for crushing/ hooking

Gold coin from Jerusalem – one is from reign of Herod the Great; 1 is from Pontius Pilate

Foot of Chair – Egypt

Wooden Mallet (Egypt). Used by stone mason – looks polished but is actually just worn by use. Wood is acasia (sp?)

Writing tablet – wooden – Moracco

Ancient Egyptian Figurines- wood

Wooden tomb models (Egypt) – pieces from a model boat. left: steering rudder right: oar

Egyptian model of a shield – imitates cow hide

Cattle horn with red paint

Rawhide shield (rhino hide)

Wooden head rest (Egypt) - worn by use

Sheeps horn, Egypt

Leather prayer strap – Jerusalem – 200 years old

Horse whip – rawhide

Spoon from sheeps horn – 19th cen.

Bone flute – Palestine 19th cen.

bone doll from Cairo

Bone artifact – Egypt? porous structure at bottom indicates that it is not ivory

boar tooth pendant – 19th cen.

FINAL LECTURE: march 28

archery

On the subject of points and arrow heads:

Harpoon tips, spear heads and so on have been found from very early times in prehistory. The evolution of the arrow ( bow and arrow) date from a later point.

Middle point: a weapon somewhat in between the spear and the arrow was the atlatl, a stick with attached cord and large spear head like point – dates from middle palelithic period:

Arrowhead types: first attested in Africa, upper Paleolithic:

foliate – designed for cutting into sinew

tanged - middle point between foliat and barbed

barbed – arrow meant to sink in and be hard to remove

barbed

Parts of Bow: the back of the bow is under tension when drawn - draw weight is how much weight it takes to draw back bow. 100 pounds is minimal for a warbow, usually 150 pouind but up to 200

3 types of bow;

- self bow (ordinary construction, solid wood, often no particular curve) - Composite bow: constructed by combination of material for example wood, bone, sinew etc.- *missed third type

Turkish composite bows were particularly effective and were constructed on wood, with a bone back and sinew on the ‘belly’ side

English longbow: Despite reputation of English lowbows they were actually just a simple self bow, no particular technological innovation. The real effectiveness of the English archer was the archer himself – bows were mass produced in England and it become a law that all Englishmen train with the bow on Sundays ( in order to increase English military power). In battles with the French , the French crossbowmen were out matched in the open field due to the longbows superior rate of fire ( mainly) .

Arrow of Stellmoor 9000-8000 BC: earliest evidence of European archery from Holmgard marsh, Denmark. Flatbow type, wood only. (African evidence still predates this)

Egpytian archers 1600:

Used transverse arrowhead, with ‘chisel points’.

The Egyptians used steam to perminatnelty curve their bows, this curve improved performance of the bow. Archery was a very important weapon to Egyptians and war scenes are dominated by the bow. The enemy lands around Egypt were called the ‘9 bows’.

Earliest composite bow:

- Depicted on the stele of Naram-sin, a king of the Akkadian period in Mesopotamia- composite bow may have been introduced to Egyptians by the Hyksos?- The Neo-Assyrians introduced horse archery. Many Assyrian war scenes are dominated by

bow warfare.

The battle of Carrhae ( ion modern Harran)

-Takes places 53 BC

- on one side the Roman army (35,000 infantry, 500 horse) is lead by Crassus

- on the other side, the Parthians under Surena has 10, 000 horse archers

- The Parthians decimated the Roman army with a huge and ongoing hair of arrows from very strong bows – they utilize a never ending supply of arrows brought by a camel train.