Curious Aardvark wrote on May 14
th, 2020 at 2:55pm:
well as gut isn't very suitable for making slingshots - although I have seen one made with torsion bars and gut instead of rubber - and rubber bands are a fairly new invention. I'd have to say that slingshots are not primitive weapons.
You can have a stone bow
Those are fairly old.
'
Running the grave risk of boring everyone with a history lesson, CA is correct. Slingshots rely on Vulcanized rubber, which was invented in 1839. Rubber bands were invented in 1845. Hodges catapult gun was designed in 1849. The first commercially produced slingshot (the Zip-Zip) was offered in 1918. The first mass marketed wrist rocket was 1953 (Saunders Archery - which continues to offer some modern takes on this vintage design).
The slingshot was invented centuries after gunpowder and centuries after airguns were invented. To put his in perspective, the steam engine was invented in 1698, the oldest known photograph is from 1826 or 1827, the telegraph was developed in the 1830’s, and the fax machine (which relies on telegraph technology and not telephone technology) was invented in 1843.
Slingshots are human powered, a common trait with the primitive weapons discussed here.