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spearheads (Read 2713 times)

slingbadger Interfector Viris Spurii Offline Don't Badger a Badger Posts: 3220 Akron NY Gender:	spearheads Oct 17^th, 2014 at 4:03pm 3 iron age spear heads, found with a boat, at the bottom of Lough Corrib, Galway, Ireland.
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Bill Skinner Forum Moderation Offline Slinging Rocks! Posts: 3292	Re: spearheads Reply #1 - Oct 17^th, 2014 at 9:21pm The bottom two look like something that the Norse would use?
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slingbadger Interfector Viris Spurii Offline Don't Badger a Badger Posts: 3220 Akron NY Gender:	Re: spearheads Reply #2 - Oct 18^th, 2014 at 6:23am Norse weren't in Ireland in the Iron Age
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Thearos Interfector Viris Spurii Offline Take that Posts: 3410	Re: spearheads Reply #3 - Oct 18^th, 2014 at 4:17pm So when do these date to, actually ? I suppose it could be any time (e.g. 500 BCE as well as 200 CE)-- is the boat dated at all ? (e.g. by dendrochronology)
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Bill Skinner Forum Moderation Offline Slinging Rocks! Posts: 3292	Re: spearheads Reply #4 - Oct 18^th, 2014 at 7:51pm Iron Age Scandinavia was trading with Ireland up to not quite 800 AD. In that time frame, it turned into the Viking Age, which lasted to around 1250 AD.
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slingbadger Interfector Viris Spurii Offline Don't Badger a Badger Posts: 3220 Akron NY Gender:	Re: spearheads Reply #5 - Oct 19^th, 2014 at 7:30am The site doesn't give any more information.
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Bill Skinner Forum Moderation Offline Slinging Rocks! Posts: 3292	Re: spearheads Reply #6 - Oct 20^th, 2014 at 9:31pm The sagas mention something called a fighting spear, which was apparently used as a slashing as well as a stabbing weapon. It had a much longer blade than a standard spear head like the one at top. I was wondering if the bottom two were that type of spear head.
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Tomas Interfector Viris Spurii Offline Posts: 2172	Re: spearheads Reply #7 - Oct 23^rd, 2014 at 6:26am Are these spears for throwing or for hand to hand combat? I assume there are different types of spears for different uses
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slingbadger

Interfector Viris Spurii

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Don't Badger a Badger

Posts: 3220
Akron NY
Gender: male

Re: spearheads
Reply #8 - Oct 23^rd, 2014 at 6:39am

OK, I tracked down some articles about the finds at Lough Corrib. There were 12 log boats (basically dug out canoes) found, dating from 4500 BC to the 11th cent. AD. The spearheads, along with some axes, were found in the 11th cent. boat. Definitely Viking.
It's funny, too because the times I've been there I've heard from the local historians that the Vikings never made it into Galway/Clare, yet little bits of evidence keep popping up.

The greatest of all the accomplishments of 20th cent. science has been the discovery of human ignorance The main difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has it's limits.-Einstein I'm getting psychic as I get older. Or is that psychotic?

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Thearos

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Take that

Posts: 3410

Re: spearheads
Reply #9 - Oct 23^rd, 2014 at 6:45am

Nice work ! Of course, the typology of the basic spearhead doesn't really change from Iron ages down to early modern period: thick central ridge, thin edges, various forms of swelling (with variants: laurel leaf, heart shaped, long leaf).

The Scandinavians also had a curious weapon, which might have evolved from the "slashing spears" in the sagas mentioned by Bill Skinner-- a long blade on a pole:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swordstaff

(with a nice illustration of a Swedish militiaman, wearing old fashioned helmet in C16th, and big trousers, ad wielding the sword-staff thingie).

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Bill Skinner Forum Moderation Offline Slinging Rocks! Posts: 3292	Re: spearheads Reply #10 - Oct 23^rd, 2014 at 10:01pm Hewing spear! That was the one! Not slashing. Anyways. Thank you for looking that up, Slingbadger. And for the follow up, Theros.
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