Last week, my partner and I moved my furniture into our new apartment. With no need for discussion, we stuck the atlatl dart atop my bookshelf. We tried to make it sit upright to no avail. It leans askew against our bedroom wall, just as it did at my old place. It's fallen down a few times already, sending the cat scurrying in terror behind the pile of yet-to-be-unpacked luggage--oddly fitting, considering the atlatl's traditional relationship to cute fuzzy animals... |
What is an atlatl, you ask? It's a spear-thrower that hunters and warriors on almost every continent used at some time or another. In Paleolithic Europe and the Pre-Columbian Americas, it was the technological precursor to the bow and arrow. Throwing a dart or spear with an atlatl is like making a person's arm twice as long, so the projectile flies farther and faster. The person throwing the dart can stay safely far away from a hostile opponent or angry wounded mammoth and still hit the mark. Atlatls are a big improvement over normal hand-held spears. So what's a 21st Century city-dweller doing with a weapon like that? |
I made it myself last September at a Penn Museum "Making Workshop." The fletching is wonky because I attached it with superglue that dried too slowly, the metal "spear tip" is crooked because I didn't screw it in straight, and it's only half-colored with hot pink and lime green sharpie because I worked too painstakingly slowly and ran out of time. I couldn't even slay the cardboard mammoth upon which the workshop participants tested our dart-throwing skills. My atlatl dart is imperfect, but I treasure it because it represents my love of museums and archaeology.
I eventually managed to spear the cardboard mammoth, too! Well, it was a different cardboard mammoth. At the end of April, I volunteered at another atlatl workshop for the Philadelphia Science Festival. After giving a presentation on the archaeology of atlatls (AKA "How Not to Get Killed by the Angry Mammoths You're Hunting 101"), I helped the attendees make their own atlatl darts and then demonstrated proper throwing technique.
Whenever I look at my atlatl dart, I think of how much fun I had making it. I think of how great it was to pass that knowledge on to others. I think of how pink and lime green is a severely underrated color combination.
Whenever I look at my atlatl dart, I think of how much fun I had making it. I think of how great it was to pass that knowledge on to others. I think of how pink and lime green is a severely underrated color combination.