| # | Polity | Coded Value | Tags | Year(s) | Edit | Desc |
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‘First used by the early Kamakura period, the naginata is closest to a European glaive in form, with an elongated shaft, and a single-edged blade curved more than that of a Kamakura-period Japanese tachi. Most likely, the naginata was based upon similar weapons introduced from China by 300 C.E. which have been unearthed in graves.’
[1]
‘From the 11th until the mid-15th century, the naginata was the primary weapon wielded by foot soldiers....From the end of the 15th century, most troops serving on foot were provided with a straight, thrusting spear (yari) that produced more effective results in destroying opposing forces.’
[2]
[1]: Deal, William E. 2005. Handbook to Life in Medieval and Early Modern Japan. Oxford University Press.p.161. [2]: Deal, William E. 2005. Handbook to Life in Medieval and Early Modern Japan. Oxford University Press.p.162. |
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‘First used by the early Kamakura period, the naginata is closest to a European glaive in form, with an elongated shaft, and a single-edged blade curved more than that of a Kamakura-period Japanese tachi. Most likely, the naginata was based upon similar weapons introduced from China by 300 C.E. which have been unearthed in graves.’
[1]
‘From the 11th until the mid-15th century, the naginata was the primary weapon wielded by foot soldiers....From the end of the 15th century, most troops serving on foot were provided with a straight, thrusting spear (yari) that produced more effective results in destroying opposing forces.’
[2]
[1]: Deal, William E. 2005. Handbook to Life in Medieval and Early Modern Japan. Oxford University Press.p.161. [2]: Deal, William E. 2005. Handbook to Life in Medieval and Early Modern Japan. Oxford University Press.p.162. |
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Reference for pre-colonial West Africa: "conventional weapons (as opposed to firearms) continued to play an effective role in West African warfare until as late as the middle of the last century." (i.e. 19th century).
[1]
[1]: (Smith 1989, 80) Robert Sydney Smith. 1989. Warfare & Diplomacy in Pre-colonial West Africa. Second Edition. The University of Wisconsin Press. Madison. |
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Inferred from the absence of polearms in previous and subsequent polities in Niger Inland Delta. Reference for pre-colonial West Africa: "conventional weapons (as opposed to firearms) continued to play an effective role in West African warfare until as late as the middle of the last century." (i.e. 19th century).
[1]
[1]: (Smith 1989, 80) Robert Sydney Smith. 1989. Warfare & Diplomacy in Pre-colonial West Africa. Second Edition. The University of Wisconsin Press. Madison. |
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These do not appear to be included in depictions of "warriors" in North Yemeni rock-art from the Late Neolithic and Bronze Age, as reproduced in Jung (1991).
[1]
However, Jung himself does not state these were not in use, nor does he remark on their absence in said depictions.
[1]: (Jung 1991) Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/JP9KX5BK. |
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The Sulayhids used African mercenaries
[1]
Sudanic cavalry used double-bladed lances, spears and javelins.
[2]
Code also can be inferred from Abbasid Caliphate
[3]
which occupied Yemen between 751-868 CE.
[1]: (Stookey 1978, 66) Robert W Stookey. 1978. Yemen: The Politics of the Yemen Arab Republic. Westview Press. Boulder. [2]: Jacquelin A Blair. Nicholas Roumas. Fernando Martell advised by Jeffrey L Forgeng. 2011. The Progression of Arms and Armor from Ancient Greece to the European Renaissance across Eurasia and Africa. Worcester Polytechnic Institute. [3]: (Nicolle 1982, 20) Nicolle, D. 1982. The Armies of Islam, 7th-11th Centuries. Osprey Publishing. |
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Coded present due to the following in contemporary Chinese sources: "Even with strong crossbows that shoot far, and long halberds that hit at a distance, the Hsiung-nu would not be able to ward them off. If the armors are sturdy and the weapons sharp, if the repetition crossbows shot far, and the platoons advance together, the Hsiung-nu will not be able to withstand. If specially trained troops are quick to release (their bows) and the arrows in a single stream hit the target together, then the leather outfit and wooden shields of the Hsiung-nu will not be able to protect them. If they dismount and fight on foot, when swords and halberds clash as [the soldiers] come into close quarters, the Hsiung-nu, who lack infantry training, will not be able to cope."
[1]
According to Nikolay Kradin, (pers. comm.) halberds were not used in this period.
[2]
[1]: Nicola Di Cosmo. 2002. Ancient China and Its Enemies: The Rise of Nomadic Power in East Asian History. Cambridge University Press. Cambridge, p. 203 [2]: (Kradin, Nikolay. Personal Communication to Jill Levine, Dan Hoyer, and Peter Turchin. April 2020. Email) |
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Coded present due to the following in a slightly earlier Chinese source: "Even with strong crossbows that shoot far, and long halberds that hit at a distance, the Hsiung-nu would not be able to ward them off. If the armors are sturdy and the weapons sharp, if the repetition crossbows shot far, and the platoons advance together, the Hsiung-nu will not be able to withstand. If specially trained troops are quick to release (their bows) and the arrows in a single stream hit the target together, then the leather outfit and wooden shields of the Hsiung-nu will not be able to protect them. If they dismount and fight on foot, when swords and halberds clash as [the soldiers] come into close quarters, the Hsiung-nu, who lack infantry training, will not be able to cope."
[1]
Nikolay Kradin (pers. comm.) writes that halberds were not present in this period.
[2]
[1]: Nicola Di Cosmo. 2002. Ancient China and Its Enemies: The Rise of Nomadic Power in East Asian History. Cambridge University Press. Cambridge, p. 203 [2]: (Kradin, Nikolay. Personal Communication with Jill Levine, Dan Hoyer, and Peter Turchin. Email. April 2020) |
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we need expert input in order to code this variable
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we need expert input in order to code this variable
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Not mentioned in sources.
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Polearms may have been used to counter cavalry and halberds were in wide use before and after this polity.
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Inferred from the presence of polearms in previous and subsequent polities in the Middle Yellow River Valley.
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the sources mention machetes, rifles and arrows but to the best of our knowledge no other weapons were used at the time
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the sources mention machetes, rifles and arrows but to the best of our knowledge no other weapons were used at the time
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Inferred present from Fatimid period pikes.
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Pikes 5.5 meters long.
[1]
"At Gaza in 312 BC the Ptolemaic assault was delibered by a force of 3,000 cavalry armed with swords and the traditional Macedonian cavalry pike or xyston."
[2]
hoplites of the phalanx carried a sarissa pike
[3]
[1]: (Lloyd 2000, 393) [2]: (Lloyd 2000, 394) [3]: (Fischer-Bovet 2014, 135-138) |
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Not mentioned in the literature. This is interpreted as evidence of absence because this is a culture of low complexity for warfare technology.
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Not mentioned in the literature. This is interpreted as evidence of absence because this is a culture of low complexity for warfare technology.
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Not common as not usually listed as a weapon.
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Not common as not usually listed as a weapon.
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Present in previous and subsequent periods.
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Inferred from previous and subsequenct (quasi)polities.
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Inferred from previous and subsequent (quasi)polities.
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Not discussed in consulted literature RA.
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Not discussed in consulted literature RA.
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Inferred from previous and subsequent (quasi)polities.
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no mention in sources; does not make sense for time period
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No references in the literature. RA.
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Not mentioned by sources in lists of artefacts found at sites in the region dating to this time.
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Not mentioned by sources in lists of artefacts found at sites in the region dating to this time.
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Reference for northern India in the 7th century CE: According to Hiuen Tsang (quoted here) some of the Harsha infantry had ’lances, halberds’ and had been ’drilled in them for generations.’
[1]
[1]: (Sen 1999, 257) Sailendra Nath Sen. 1999. Ancient Indian History and Civilization. Second Edition. New Age International (P) Limited, Publishers. New Delhi. |
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"As with the rest of the Near East, there is little evidence for warfare in Neolithic Mesopotamia."
[1]
[1]: (Hamblin 2006: 33) Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/4WM3RBTD. |
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Technology not found in archaeological evidence until much later
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Technology not found in archaeological evidence until much later
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Technology not found in archaeological evidence until much later
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Technology not found in archaeological evidence until much later
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Technology not found in archaeological evidence until much later
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Technology not yet available.
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Technology not found in archaeological evidence until much later
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No information in literature.
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No information in literature.
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No archaeological evidence for this. Moreover, the scholarly consensus is that the Jomon were relatively peaceful.
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No archaeological evidence for this. Moreover, the scholarly consensus is that the Jomon were relatively peaceful.
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No archaeological evidence for this. Moreover, the scholarly consensus is that the Jomon were relatively peaceful.
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"The establishment of Chinese provinces in the northern Korean Peninsula conveyed knowledge of bronze and iron closer to the Japanese islands, and with Yayoi bronze spears, halberds, swords, mirrors, and bells appeared. In each case, the imported items were transformed by local bronze casters into forms more suited to local tastes and requirements. Thus the weapons were enlarged and broadened."
[1]
[1]: Charles F W Higham. 2004. Encyclopedia of Ancient Asian Civilizations. Facts On File, Inc. New York. p.404 |
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Present in preceding and succeeding polities.
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According to Coe (2003), iron was used in weaponry, including knives, spears and arrowheads since Iron Age chiefdoms (c. 500 BC to c. 200-500 CE). ’Iron was used not only for axes (for land clearance) and digging implements, but also for weaponry, principally knives, spears and arrowheads; in fact, weapons are often found in burials’
[1]
[1]: (Coe 2003, 49) |
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Inferred from the absence of polearms in previous and subsequent polities in the Niger Inland Delta.
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Sources
[1]
only mention very little archaeological evidence for weaponry for this period, and this does not include polearms. However, weapons made from wood and cloth have been documented for the later periods, so their absence in the archaeological record may be due to preservation bias.
[1]: Marcus and Flannery (1996) Zapotec Civilization: How urban society evolved in Mexico’s Oaxaca Valley. Flannery and Marcus (1983) The Cloud People: divergent evolution of the Zapotec and Mixtec civilizations. Museum of Anthropology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. Academic Press, New York. |
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Not mentioned by sources.
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"Little is known about warfare in Mesoamerica before the Middle Formative [...] warfare was relatively unorganized, conducted by small groups armed with unspecialized tool-weapons".
[1]
[1]: (Hassig 1992: 12-13) Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/E9VHCKDG. |
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Not mentioned in detailed descriptions and lists of Toltec weaponry.
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not mentioned in any of the sources that deal with weapons and armor
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not mentioned in any of the sources that deal with weapons and armor
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no record of such weapons
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No information in the archaeological evidence for this time
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no record of such weapons
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not mentioned in literature
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No information in the archaeological evidence for this time
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no record of such weapons
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Not mentioned in literature
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Checked by Peter Peregrine.
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Checked by Peter Peregrine.
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Present in preceding and succeeding polities.
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"Even with strong crossbows that shoot far, and long halberds that hit at a distance, the Hsiung-nu would not be able to ward them off. If the armors are sturdy and the weapons sharp, if the repetition crossbows shot far, and the platoons advance together, the Hsiung-nu will not be able to withstand. If specially trained troops are quick to release (their bows) and the arrows in a single stream hit the target together, then the leather outfit and wooden shields of the Hsiung-nu will not be able to protect them. If they dismount and fight on foot, when swords and halberds clash as [the soldiers] come into close quarters, the Hsiung-nu, who lack infantry training, will not be able to cope."
[1]
[1]: Nicola Di Cosmo. 2002. Ancient China and Its Enemies: The Rise of Nomadic Power in East Asian History. Cambridge University Press. Cambridge, p. 203 |
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Present due to the following in contemporary Chinese sources, which are relevant for gaining insight on the weapons and armor of Steppe Nomads. "Even with strong crossbows that shoot far, and long halberds that hit at a distance, the Hsiung-nu would not be able to ward them off. If the armors are sturdy and the weapons sharp, if the repetition crossbows shot far, and the platoons advance together, the Hsiung-nu will not be able to withstand. If specially trained troops are quick to release (their bows) and the arrows in a single stream hit the target together, then the leather outfit and wooden shields of the Hsiung-nu will not be able to protect them. If they dismount and fight on foot, when swords and halberds clash as [the soldiers] come into close quarters, the Hsiung-nu, who lack infantry training, will not be able to cope."
[1]
[1]: Nicola Di Cosmo. 2002. Ancient China and Its Enemies: The Rise of Nomadic Power in East Asian History. Cambridge University Press. Cambridge, p. 203 |
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"At ERLITOU, elite graves contained bronze grave goods, including vessels, bells, knives, and halberds (ge)."
[1]
. The Shang dagger-axe had a one meter long shaft, could also be classified as a polearm
[2]
ge dagger-axe.
[3]
[1]: (Higham 2004, 57) [2]: (Gaukroger and Scott 2009, 11) [3]: (Thorp 2013, 105) Thorp, Robert L. 2013. China in the Early Bronze Age: Shang Civilization.University of Pennsylvania Press. |
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"At ERLITOU, elite graves contained bronze grave goods, including vessels, bells, knives, and halberds (ge)."
[1]
. The Shang dagger-axe had a one meter long shaft, could also be classified as a polearm
[2]
ge dagger-axe.
[3]
[1]: (Higham 2004, 57) [2]: (Gaukroger and Scott 2009, 11) [3]: (Thorp 2013, 105) Thorp, Robert L. 2013. China in the Early Bronze Age: Shang Civilization.University of Pennsylvania Press. |
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The Shang dagger-axe had a one meter long shaft, could also be classified as a polearm.
[1]
Dagger-axe.
[2]
Used a "bronze tipped halberd".
[3]
Bronze halberds.
[4]
[1]: (Gauckroger and Scott 2009, 11) [2]: (Peers 2013, 10) [3]: (The Shang Dynasty, 1600 to 1050 BCE. Spice Digest, Fall 2007. http://iis-db.stanford.edu/docs/117/ShangDynasty.pdf) [4]: (Bavarian 2005) Bavarian, Behzad. July 2005. Unearthing Technology’s Influence on the Ancient Chinese Dynasties through Metallurgical Investigations, California State University. Northridge. http://library.csun.edu/docs/bavarian.pdf |
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Checked by Peter Peregrine.
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Checked by Peter Peregrine.
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Checked by Peter Peregrine.
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Not mentioned in the sources so far consulted.
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Dagger-axe
[1]
Dagger-axes on poles.
[1]
Standard equipment for Western Zhou soldier included the dagger-axe.
[2]
ji halberd.
[3]
[1]: (Gaukroger and Scott 2009, 14) [2]: (Hong 1992, 88) Hong, Yang. 1992. Weapons in Ancient China. Science Press. [3]: (Hong 1992, 89) Hong, Yang. 1992. Weapons in Ancient China. Science Press. |
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In [Ciudad Perdida], a few foreign elements of European origin were found, especially steel objects like axes, machetes or halberds. "En el sitio se han encontrado algunos elementos foráneos de orígen europeo, especialmente objetos de hierro (hachas, machetes, alabardas, etc.)."
[1]
[1]: (Cadavid Camargo and Groot de Mahecha 1987) |
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"The principal weapons in the late Predynastic and Protodynastic Periods were undoubtedly the bow and arrow, spear, axe and mace. These are frequently shown in relief depictions of hunting and battle scenes (figure 18)."
[1]
[1]: (Shaw 1991: 31) Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/7J8H86XF. |
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"Whereas the conventional spear was intended to be thrown at the enemy, there was also a form of halberd (figure 25c), which was effectively a spear shaft fitted with an axe blade and used for cutting and slashing."
[1]
[1]: (Shaw 1991: 36) Shaw, Ian. 1991. Egyptian Warfare and Weapons. Princes Risborough: Shire. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/7J8H86XF. |
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"Whereas the conventional spear was intended to be thrown at the enemy, there was also a form of halberd (figure 25c), which was effectively a spear shaft fitted with an axe blade and used for cutting and slashing."
[1]
[1]: (Shaw 1991: 36) Shaw, Ian. 1991. Egyptian Warfare and Weapons. Princes Risborough: Shire. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/7J8H86XF. |
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"The principal weapons in the late Predynastic and Protodynastic Periods were undoubtedly the bow and arrow, spear, axe and mace. These are frequently shown in relief depictions of hunting and battle scenes (figure 18)."
[1]
[1]: (Shaw 1991: 31) Shaw, Ian. 1991. Egyptian Warfare and Weapons. Princes Risborough: Shire. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/7J8H86XF. |
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"The principal weapons in the late Predynastic and Protodynastic Periods were undoubtedly the bow and arrow, spear, axe and mace. These are frequently shown in relief depictions of hunting and battle scenes (figure 18)."
[1]
[1]: (Shaw 1991: 31) Shaw, Ian. 1991. Egyptian Warfare and Weapons. Princes Risborough: Shire. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/7J8H86XF. |
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|
"Whereas the conventional spear was intended to be thrown at the enemy, there was also a form of halberd (figure 25c), which was effectively a spear shaft fitted with an axe blade and used for cutting and slashing."
[1]
[1]: (Shaw 1991: 36) Shaw, Ian. 1991. Egyptian Warfare and Weapons. Princes Risborough: Shire. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/7J8H86XF. |
||||||
|
"Whereas the conventional spear was intended to be thrown at the enemy, there was also a form of halberd (figure 25c), which was effectively a spear shaft fitted with an axe blade and used for cutting and slashing."
[1]
[1]: (Shaw 1991: 36) Shaw, Ian. 1991. Egyptian Warfare and Weapons. Princes Risborough: Shire. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/7J8H86XF. |
||||||
|
Pikes 5.5 meters long.
[1]
"At Gaza in 312 BC the Ptolemaic assault was delibered by a force of 3,000 cavalry armed with swords and the traditional Macedonian cavalry pike or xyston."
[2]
hoplites of the phalanx carried a sarissa pike
[3]
[1]: (Lloyd 2000, 393) [2]: (Lloyd 2000, 394) [3]: (Fischer-Bovet 2014, 135-138) |
||||||
|
"Whereas the conventional spear was intended to be thrown at the enemy, there was also a form of halberd (figure 25c), which was effectively a spear shaft fitted with an axe blade and used for cutting and slashing."
[1]
[1]: (Shaw 1991: 36) Shaw, Ian. 1991. Egyptian Warfare and Weapons. Princes Risborough: Shire. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/7J8H86XF. |
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|
Present for Abbasid Caliphate: "In defence the abna were trained to maintain ranks behind their long pikes and broadswords however hard the enemy pressed, and then to fight hand-to-hand with short-swords and daggers. I attack, a short spear or javelin seems to have replaced the pike, and a mace might also have been added. Although abna were often armoured, they would also fight without cuirass or even shield."
[1]
[1]: (Nicolle 1982, 20) Nicolle, D. 1982. The Armies of Islam, 7th-11th Centuries. Osprey Publishing. |
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|
“The company officers carried different polearms. The halberd was the weapon of the sergeants.” “Captains (and sometimes sergeant-majors carried a gineta, with a teardrop-shaped blade above a fringed collar, and the partesana was the weapon of corporals. However these arms were carried as distinctions of status rather than fighting, and captains fought with the weapons of their companies.”
[1]
[1]: (López 2012, 86-7) López, Ignacio J.N. 2012. The Spanish Tercios 1536-1704. Osprey Publishing. https://www.zotero.org/groups/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/4EWFWHCQ |
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|
The first axes made of copper, and then bronze, appeared in the Early Bronze Age. They were not necessarily linked to warfare but could have had a mixed use, including woodworking and individual defence. The first daggers and halberds appeared soon after, and there is no doubt that these were used for warfare, even though they could also be ornaments. "Au Bronze ancien apparaissent les premières haches en cuivre puis en bronze (cat. 1 et 2). Celles-ci ne sont pas a priori liées à des activités belliqueuses, mais cela n’exclut pas une utilisation mixte, entre le travail du bois et la défense individuelle. Elles sont rapidement accompagnées de poignards (cat. 11) et de hallebardes dont l’usage ne laisse guère de doute quant à leur utilisation guerrière (même s’il peut s’agir d’armes d’apparat)."
[1]
Reference is not specific to Paris Basin cultures so more research is needed.
[1]: (Ghesquière in Macigny et al 2005, 23) |
||||||
|
Lances, swords, crossbowmen, longbows, pikemen were of central importance on the battlefield for at least 200 years after the first guns until the Battle of Carignola (1503 CE) which was probably decided by guns and Marignano (1515 CE) when Swiss squares were beaten by cavalry shooting pistols and cannon artillery.
[1]
The first Bourbon era 1589-1660 CE is firmly after the transition to firearm dominance so at this time the old weapons must have played only a minor role in warfare or had been completely abandoned. Infantry armor became heavier as cavalry armor was discarded. e.g. pikeman who faced lancers. Breastplates and steel leggings were available but most wore stiff leather coats.
[2]
Still some pikemen?
[1]: (Nolan 2006, 367) Cathal J Nolan. 2006. The Age of Wars of Religion, 1000-1650: An Encyclopedia of Global Warfare and Civilization. Volume 1 A - K. Greenwood Press. Westport. [2]: (Nolan 2006, 26) Cathal J Nolan. 2006. The Age of Wars of Religion, 1000-1650: An Encyclopedia of Global Warfare and Civilization. Volume 1 A - K. Greenwood Press. Westport. |
||||||
|
New forms of polearm introduced in the 14th and 15th centuries
[1]
- implies there were old forms of polearm, or spears used as a polearm.
[1]: (Boulton 1995 67-68) Jonathan D Boulton. Armor And Weapons. William W Kibler. Grover A Zinn. Lawrence Earp. John Bell Henneman Jr. 1995. Routledge Revivals: Medieval France (1995): An Encyclopedia. Routledge. Abingdon. |
||||||
|
New forms of polearm introduced in the 14th and 15th centuries
[1]
- implies there were old forms of polearm, or spears used as a polearm. Early 13th century Brabancon mercenaries from modern Brabant, Belgium fought with pikes or long spears.
[2]
[1]: (Boulton 1995 67-68) Jonathan D Boulton. Armor And Weapons. William W Kibler. Grover A Zinn. Lawrence Earp. John Bell Henneman Jr. 1995. Routledge Revivals: Medieval France (1995): An Encyclopedia. Routledge. Abingdon. [2]: (Nicolle 1991, 10) |
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|
Inferred from previous and subsequent (quasi)polities.
|
||||||
|
Not discussed in consulted literature RA.
|
||||||
|
Inferred from previous and subsequent (quasi)polities.
|
||||||
|
Inferred from previous and subsequent (quasi)polities.
|
||||||
|
New forms of polearm introduced in the 14th and 15th centuries
[1]
- implies there were old forms of polearm, or spears used as a polearm. Early 13th century Brabancon mercenaries from modern Brabant, Belgium fought with pikes or long spears.
[2]
[1]: (Boulton 1995 67-68) Jonathan D Boulton. Armor And Weapons. William W Kibler. Grover A Zinn. Lawrence Earp. John Bell Henneman Jr. 1995. Routledge Revivals: Medieval France (1995): An Encyclopedia. Routledge. Abingdon. [2]: (Nicolle and McBridge 1991, 10) |
||||||
|
No references in the literature. RA.
|
||||||
|
Technology not found in archaeological evidence until much later
|
||||||
|
Sources reference swords, axes, and the falx, which is like a combination of the two and looks like an elongated sickle, but not polearms in this era.
[1]
[1]: (Howard 2011: 33-34) Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/GRTPCZB4. |
||||||
|
‘First used by the early Kamakura period, the naginata is closest to a European glaive in form, with an elongated shaft, and a single-edged blade curved more than that of a Kamakura-period Japanese tachi. Most likely, the naginata was based upon similar weapons introduced from China by 300 C.E. which have been unearthed in graves.’
[1]
[1]: Deal, William E. 2005. Handbook to Life in Medieval and Early Modern Japan. Oxford University Press.p.161. |
||||||
|
Old Mataram was a ’highly Indianized culture’ until it was replaced by an East Javanese one "that increasingly promoted various elements of the island’s older indigenous traditions."
[1]
The switch-over did not occur until the end of the Kediri Kingdom: it was the Singhasari Kingdom that witnessed ’the decline of Hindu culture and civilisation in Java and the succession of Javanese culture.’
[2]
Temple reliefs from earlier periods contain murals showing clubs, swords, bows and arrows, spears, shields, armour, knives, halberds.
[3]
Indian military terms surviving in Javanese: "war, weapon, sword, lance, armour, shield, helmet, banner, battle, siege, fortress, soldier, officer, enemy, spy, etc."
[4]
[1]: (Unesco 2005, 233) Unesco. 2005. The Restoration of Borobudur. Unesco. [2]: (Rao 2005, 213) B V Rao. 2005. History of Asia. Sterling Publishers Pvt Ltd. New Dawn Press, Inc. Elgin. [3]: (Draeger 1972, 23, 27) D F Draeger. 1972. Weapons and Fighting Arts of Indonesia. Tuttle Publishing. [4]: (Kumara 2007, 161) Sasiprabha Kumara. 2007. Sanskrit Across Cultures. Special Centre for Sanskrit Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University. New Delhi. |
||||||
|
Inferred from use in preceding and succeeding polities.
|
||||||
|
not mentioned in sources detailing A’chik weapons and tools
|
||||||
|
"The period between the post-Gupta era and the Islamic invasions is generally regarded as a sort of ’quasi Dark Age’ in India ... military historian U. P. Thapliyal asserts that after AD 500, there were no innovations in the theory and practice of warfare."
[1]
Kaushik Roy disagrees with this evaluation I presume with respect to the idea of a lack of new innovation rather than there being a complete shift to new weaponry. Reference for northern India in the 7th century CE: According to Hiuen Tsang (quoted here) some of the Harsha infantry had ’lances, halberds’ and had been ’drilled in them for generations.’
[2]
The Harsha are a post-Gupta era polity so if they used lances and halberds and there was no major shift in weaponry until the Islamic invasion then lances and halberds were probably still in use at this time.
[1]: (Roy 2013, 27) Kaushik Roy. 2013 Military Manpower, Armies and Warfare in South Asia. Routledge. London. [2]: (Sen 1999, 257) Sailendra Nath Sen. 1999. Ancient Indian History and Civilization. Second Edition. New Age International (P) Limited, Publishers. New Delhi. |
||||||
|
"The Guptas imitated the dress, equipment and the techniques of warfare as practised by the Central Asian nomads."
[1]
The Kushans had used polearms.
[2]
[1]: (Roy 2016, 22) Kaushik Roy. 2016. Military Manpower, Armies and Warfare in South Asia. Routledge. Abingdon. [2]: (Mukhamedjanov 1994, 269) Mukhamedjanov, A R. Economy and Social System in Central Asia in the Kushan Age. in Harmatta J, Puri B N and Etemadi G F eds. 1994. History of civilizations of Central Asia. Volume II. UNESCO. |
||||||
|
Reference for northern India in the 7th century CE: According to Hiuen Tsang (quoted here) some of the Harsha infantry had ’lances, halberds’ and had been ’drilled in them for generations.’
[1]
"The period between the post-Gupta era and the Islamic invasions is generally regarded as a sort of ’quasi Dark Age’ in India ... military historian U. P. Thapliyal asserts that after AD 500, there were no innovations in the theory and practice of warfare."
[2]
Kaushik Roy disagrees with this evaluation but I presume with respect to the idea of a lack of new innovation.
[1]: (Sen 1999, 257) Sailendra Nath Sen. 1999. Ancient Indian History and Civilization. Second Edition. New Age International (P) Limited, Publishers. New Delhi. [2]: (Roy 2013, 27) Kaushik Roy. 2013 Military Manpower, Armies and Warfare in South Asia. Routledge. London. |
||||||
|
"The cavalrymen carried one-handed as well as heavy two-handed lances."
[1]
"Hoysala cavalrymen were lancers."
[1]
Hoysala infantry units had "pikes, lances, swords, maces and bows and arrows."
[2]
[1]: (Roy 2015, 98) Kaushik Roy. 2015. Warfare in Pre-British India - 1500 BCE to 1740 CE. Routledge. London. [2]: (Roy 2013) Kaushik Roy. 2013 Military Manpower, Armies and Warfare in South Asia. Routledge. London. |
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|
"There was no significant change in the weaponry of the Indian army from ancient to classical times; in fact, according to Kosambi, there was a decline in the standard of arms. Indian soldiers were mostly very poorly equipped, noted Marco Polo."
[1]
Present during the preceding Hoysala period: "The Hoysala Army could be taken as a microcosm of the force structure of the Hindu polities in Deccan and South India. The infantry carried bamboo bows, swords, spears and shields."
[2]
In the preceding period "Hoysala cavalrymen were lancers."
[2]
[1]: (Eraly 2011, 169) Abraham Eraly. 2011. The First Spring: The Golden Age of India. Penguin Books India Pvt. Ltd. New Delhi. [2]: (Roy 2015, 98) Kaushik Roy. 2015. Warfare in Pre-British India - 1500 BCE to 1740 CE. Routledge. London. |
||||||
|
Javelins, bows and various handheld weapons made of iron are present in the Later Vedic period, as shown by textual and archaeological evidence.
[1]
Other weapons are not mentioned and are therefore presumed absent.
[1]: Upinder Singh, A History of Ancient and Early Medieval India: From the Stone Age to the 12th Century (New Delhi: Pearson Education, 2008), p.199, 245. |
||||||
|
According to Coe (2003), iron was used in weaponry, including knives, spears and arrowheads since Iron Age chiefdoms (c. 500 BC to c. 200-500 CE). ’Iron was used not only for axes (for land clearance) and digging implements, but also for weaponry, principally knives, spears and arrowheads; in fact, weapons are often found in burials’
[1]
[1]: (Coe 2003, p. 49) |
||||||
|
According to a military historian (this needs confirmation from a Mauryan specialist): dagger-axes.
[1]
in ancient China these were halberds, or Polearms. According to a military historian (this needs confirmation from a Mauryan specialist): "A special long lance, the tomara, was carried by infantry mounted on the backs of elephants" and used against enemy infantry who got too close.
[1]
[1]: (Gabriel 2002, 219) Gabriel, Richard A. 2002. The Great Armies of Antiquity. Greenwood Publishing Group. |
||||||
|
Inferred from use in Mauryan Empire. The Sunga Dynasty was in effect the continuation of the Mauryan Empire as it was established in a coup by the Mauryan general Pushyamitra Sunga (Roy 2015, 19).
[1]
According to one military historian (this data needs to be confirmed by a polity specialist) the Mauryan army used the dagger axe (which from the illustration looks like a battle axe, although it is probably not drawn to scale so it could be a polearm? and there is another weapon called the ’battle-axe’).
[2]
[1]: (Roy 2015: 19) Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/35K9MMUW. [2]: (Gabriel 2002, 212) Richard A Gabriel. 2002. The Great Armies Of Antiquity. Praeger. Westport. |
||||||
|
"It was not until iron came into widespread use in the early first millennium that swords in particular and iron weapons in general began to replace the more expensive bronze spears, arrowheads, axes, and daggers of earlier times."
[1]
[1]: (McIntosh 2005: 190) Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/KK2E3KMD. |
||||||
|
"The Standard of Ur’ and ’The Stele of Vultures’ (see p. 75) depict foot soldiers armed with spears or pole-mounted axes, their heads protected by leather or felt helmets."
[1]
[1]: (McIntosh 2005: 187) Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/KK2E3KMD. |
||||||
|
"We have no evidence for warfare. In contrast with later periods, ’Ubaid seals show no depictions of weapons, prisoners, or combat scenes".
[1]
[1]: (Stein 1994: 39) Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/V94SXJRJ. |
||||||
|
Ak Koyunlu armies had infantry and auxiliaries.
[1]
Islamic infantry of the period used maces and pole-arm weapons.
[2]
[1]: (Quiring-Zoche 2011) Quiring-Zoche, R. 2011. Aq Qoyunlu. http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/aq-qoyunlu-confederation [2]: (Jones ed. 2012, 92-93) Gareth Jones. ed. The Military History Book: The Ultimate Visual Guide to the Weapons that Shaped the World. Dorling Kindersley Limited. London. |
||||||
|
Technology not found in archaeological evidence until much later
|
||||||
|
Technology not found in archaeological evidence until much later
|
||||||
|
Found in the immediately neighboring and close Luristan region ‘Horse gear includes horse-harness trappings and horse-bits with decorative cheek-pieces. Arms and equipment include spiked axheads and adzes, halberds, daggers or swords, and whetstone handles.’
[1]
[1]: Bruno Overlaet, ‘Luristan During the Iron Age’, In Daniel T. Potts (ed.), The Oxford Handbook of Ancient Iran, 2013, pp. 385 |
||||||
|
This was found in the immediately neighboring and close Luristan region for this period "Horse gear includes horse-harness trappings and horse-bits with decorative cheek-pieces. Arms and equipment include spiked axheads and adzes, halberds, daggers or swords, and whetstone handles."
[1]
[1]: Bruno Overlaet, ‘Luristan During the Iron Age’, In Daniel T. Potts (ed.), The Oxford Handbook of Ancient Iran, 2013, pp. 385 |
||||||
|
‘First used by the early Kamakura period, the naginata is closest to a European glaive in form, with an elongated shaft, and a single-edged blade curved more than that of a Kamakura-period Japanese tachi. Most likely, the naginata was based upon similar weapons introduced from China by 300 C.E. which have been unearthed in graves.’
[1]
According to one military historian, warriors of the Land of Wa (Japan) mentioned by early Han annals used halberds.
[2]
- do polity/region specialists consider these early Han annals a reliable source?
[1]: Deal, William E. 2005. Handbook to Life in Medieval and Early Modern Japan. Oxford University Press.p.161. [2]: (Gabriel 2002, 316) Richard A Gabriel. 2002. The Great Armies of Antiquity. Praeger. Westport. |
||||||
|
Plutarch mentions Romans had to face "long pikes" at Carrhae.
[1]
Are these polearms or lances? Parthians did not have much infantry so presumably these are the Parthian heavy cavalry. Cassius Dio [c. CE 155 - 235] in Roman History: “The Parthians make no use of a shield, but their forces consist of mounted archers and pikemen, mostly in full armour. Their infantry is small, made up of the weaker men; but even these are all archers. They practise from boyhood, and the climate and the land combine to aid both horsemanship and archery... They are really formidable in warfare, but nevertheless they have a reputation greater than their achievements, because in spite of their not having gained anything from the Romans, and having besides, given up certain portions of their own domain, they have not yet been enslaved, but even to this day hold their own in the wars they wage against us.”
[2]
[1]: (Ellis 2004, 38) Ellis, John. 2004. Cavalry: History of Mounted Warfare. Pen and Sword. [2]: quoted in Ted Kaizer, ‘The Parthian and Early Sasanian Empires c.247 BC - AD 300’, in Thomas Harrison (ed.), The Great Empires of the Ancient World (London: Thames & Hudson, 2009), p.186 |
||||||
|
Technology not found in archaeological evidence until much later
|
||||||
|
"The dearth of illustrative material for the greater part of six centuries is largely due to the wanton destruction caused by two savage invasions from the east and only such finds as the stucco figures from Kara-shar [Central Asian warrior, eighth to tenth century] tell us that in all this period there had been little change."
[1]
[1]: (Robinson 1967) Robinson, H. Russell. 1967. Oriental Armour. Walker and Co. New York. |
||||||
|
Evidence of daggers, halberds, arrows, and flat axes in burials but sources discuss evidence of spears, javelins and spearheads appear towards the beginning of the Bronze Age.
[1]
[1]: (Guilaine 2008: 64) Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/LZB53FDH. |
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|
I coded these as "present", along with spears and swords, to account for such ceremonial outfits as the papacy’s Swiss Guards.
|
||||||
|
‘First used by the early Kamakura period, the naginata is closest to a European glaive in form, with an elongated shaft, and a single-edged blade curved more than that of a Kamakura-period Japanese tachi. Most likely, the naginata was based upon similar weapons introduced from China by 300 C.E. which have been unearthed in graves.’
[1]
‘From the 11th until the mid-15th century, the naginata was the primary weapon wielded by foot soldiers....From the end of the 15th century, most troops serving on foot were provided with a straight, thrusting spear (yari) that produced more effective results in destroying opposing forces.’
[2]
[1]: Deal, William E. 2005. Handbook to Life in Medieval and Early Modern Japan. Oxford University Press.p.161. [2]: Deal, William E. 2005. Handbook to Life in Medieval and Early Modern Japan. Oxford University Press.p.162. |
||||||
|
‘First used by the early Kamakura period, the naginata is closest to a European glaive in form, with an elongated shaft, and a single-edged blade curved more than that of a Kamakura-period Japanese tachi. Most likely, the naginata was based upon similar weapons introduced from China by 300 C.E. which have been unearthed in graves.’
[1]
[1]: Deal, William E. 2005. Handbook to Life in Medieval and Early Modern Japan. Oxford University Press.p.161. |
||||||
|
‘First used by the early Kamakura period, the naginata is closest to a European glaive in form, with an elongated shaft, and a single-edged blade curved more than that of a Kamakura-period Japanese tachi. Most likely, the naginata was based upon similar weapons introduced from China by 300 C.E. which have been unearthed in graves.’
[1]
‘From the 11th until the mid-15th century, the naginata was the primary weapon wielded by foot soldiers....From the end of the 15th century, most troops serving on foot were provided with a straight, thrusting spear (yari) that produced more effective results in destroying opposing forces.’
[2]
[1]: Deal, William E. 2005. Handbook to Life in Medieval and Early Modern Japan. Oxford University Press.p.161. [2]: Deal, William E. 2005. Handbook to Life in Medieval and Early Modern Japan. Oxford University Press.p.162. |
||||||
|
‘First used by the early Kamakura period, the naginata is closest to a European glaive in form, with an elongated shaft, and a single-edged blade curved more than that of a Kamakura-period Japanese tachi. Most likely, the naginata was based upon similar weapons introduced from China by 300 C.E. which have been unearthed in graves.’
[1]
[1]: Deal, William E. 2005. Handbook to Life in Medieval and Early Modern Japan. Oxford University Press.p.161. |
||||||
|
No archaeological evidence for this. Moreover, the scholarly consensus is that the Jomon were relatively peaceful.
|
||||||
|
No archaeological evidence for this. Moreover, the scholarly consensus is that the Jomon were relatively peaceful.
|
||||||
|
No archaeological evidence for this. Moreover, the scholarly consensus is that the Jomon were relatively peaceful.
|
||||||
|
‘First used by the early Kamakura period, the naginata is closest to a European glaive in form, with an elongated shaft, and a single-edged blade curved more than that of a Kamakura-period Japanese tachi. Most likely, the naginata was based upon similar weapons introduced from China by 300 C.E. which have been unearthed in graves.’
[1]
‘From the 11th until the mid-15th century, the naginata was the primary weapon wielded by foot soldiers.’
[2]
[1]: Deal, William E. 2005. Handbook to Life in Medieval and Early Modern Japan. Oxford University Press.p.161. [2]: Deal, William E. 2005. Handbook to Life in Medieval and Early Modern Japan. Oxford University Press.p.162. |
||||||
|
The mastery of polearm’s (naginata) was listed as a basic skill practiced by samurai in the Tokugawa period. ‘First used by the early Kamakura period, the naginata is closest to a European glaive in form, with an elongated shaft, and a single-edged blade curved more than that of a Kamakura-period Japanese tachi. Most likely, the naginata was based upon similar weapons introduced from China by 300 C.E. which have been unearthed in graves.’
[1]
‘From the 11th until the mid-15th century, the naginata was the primary weapon wielded by foot soldier... In the Edo period, naginata techniques became an established martial art and schools of instruction emerged. Daughters of samurai were expected to learn naginata jutsu, and the polearm was regarded as a woman’s weapon from the 17th century on.’
[2]
[1]: Deal, William E. 2005. Handbook to Life in Medieval and Early Modern Japan. Oxford University Press.p.161. [2]: Deal, William E. 2005. Handbook to Life in Medieval and Early Modern Japan. Oxford University Press.p.162. |
||||||
|
Not mentioned in the sources so far consulted. "Turkish weapons, 10th-12th centuries. An assortment of typical Turco-Mongol or Central Asian weapons fragments were found during archaeological excavations at the Citadel of Kuva. This area, close to the frontier with China, became the heartland of the Kara-Khanid Sultanate which rivalled the Seljuks for the domination of the north-eastern provinces of the Islamic world ... The weapons themselves, including parts of daggers, arrowheads and spearheads, would have been identical to those used by Seljuk warriors both here in Transoxania, in Iran and in Syria".
[1]
[1]: (Nicolle 2001, 51) Nicolle, David. 2001. The Crusades. Osprey Publishing. |
||||||
|
’The ordinary Khmer soldiers as well as officers might carry a lance; or a bow, with the arrows being held in a quiver; or sabres of different length; or various sizes of knives and daggers; or a kind of halberd known as a phka’h. The latter was basically an iron axe mounted on a long handle curved at one end. At Angkor Wat, the phka’k is held in the hands of high-ranking warriors mounted on elephants or horses; it is still in use in the twentieth century for hunting or work in the forest. Crossbows were known, but are extremely rare in the reliefs.’
[1]
’Remaining to be studied is a weapon, the phkn’h, a kind of axe (which in this translation will be termed the Khmer axe) which, like the knives and cutlasses, remains the same in form from generation to generation until the present.’
[2]
[1]: (Coe 2003, p. 185) [2]: (Jacq-Hergoualc’h and Smithies 2007, p. 24) |
||||||
|
’The ordinary Khmer soldiers as well as officers might carry a lance; or a bow, with the arrows being held in a quiver; or sabres of different length; or various sizes of knives and daggers; or a kind of halberd known as a phka’h. The latter was basically an iron axe mounted on a long handle curved at one end. At Angkor Wat, the phka’k is held in the hands of high-ranking warriors mounted on elephants or horses; it is still in use in the twentieth century for hunting or work in the forest. Crossbows were known, but are extremely rare in the reliefs.’
[1]
’Remaining to be studied is a weapon, the phkn’h, a kind of axe (which in this translation will be termed the Khmer axe) which, like the knives and cutlasses, remains the same in form from generation to generation until the present.’
[2]
[1]: (Coe 2003, p. 185) [2]: (Jacq-Hergoualc’h and Smithies 2007, p. 24) |
||||||
|
’The ordinary Khmer soldiers as well as officers might carry a lance; or a bow, with the arrows being held in a quiver; or sabres of different length; or various sizes of knives and daggers; or a kind of halberd known as a phka’h. The latter was basically an iron axe mounted on a long handle curved at one end. At Angkor Wat, the phka’k is held in the hands of high-ranking warriors mounted on elephants or horses; it is still in use in the twentieth century for hunting or work in the forest. Crossbows were known, but are extremely rare in the reliefs.’
[1]
’Remaining to be studied is a weapon, the phkn’h, a kind of axe (which in this translation will be termed the Khmer axe) which, like the knives and cutlasses, remains the same in form from generation to generation until the present.’
[2]
[1]: (Coe 2003, p. 185) [2]: (Jacq-Hergoualc’h and Smithies 2007, p. 24) |
||||||
|
’The ordinary Khmer soldiers as well as officers might carry a lance; or a bow, with the arrows being held in a quiver; or sabres of different length; or various sizes of knives and daggers; or a kind of halberd known as a phka’h. The latter was basically an iron axe mounted on a long handle curved at one end. At Angkor Wat, the phka’k is held in the hands of high-ranking warriors mounted on elephants or horses; it is still in use in the twentieth century for hunting or work in the forest. Crossbows were known, but are extremely rare in the reliefs.’
[1]
’Remaining to be studied is a weapon, the phkn’h, a kind of axe (which in this translation will be termed the Khmer axe) which, like the knives and cutlasses, remains the same in form from generation to generation until the present.’
[2]
[1]: (Coe 2003, p. 185) [2]: (Jacq-Hergoualc’h and Smithies 2007, p. 24) |
||||||
|
According to Coe (2003), iron was used in weaponry, including knives, spears and arrowheads since Iron Age chiefdoms (c. 500 BC to c. 200-500 CE). ’Iron was used not only for axes (for land clearance) and digging implements, but also for weaponry, principally knives, spears and arrowheads; in fact, weapons are often found in burials’
[1]
[1]: (Coe 2003, p. 49) |
||||||
|
"With the military system of the Liao dynasty, every regular soldier was provided with a full set of military equipment, including three horses and nine iron weapons (namely, four bows, 400 arrows, the long spear, the short spear, the short pole lance, the broadax, the hammer, the banderole and the fire stone)."
[1]
[1]: (Huang and Hong 2018) Fuhua Huang. Fan Hong. 2018. A History of Chinese Martial Arts. Routledge. Abingdon. |
||||||
|
Sources
[1]
only mention very little archaeological evidence for weaponry for this period, and this does not include polearms. However, weapons made from wood and cloth have been documented for the later periods, so their absence in the archaeological record may be due to preservation bias.
[1]: Marcus and Flannery (1996) Zapotec Civilization: How urban society evolved in Mexico’s Oaxaca Valley. Flannery and Marcus (1983) The Cloud People: divergent evolution of the Zapotec and Mixtec civilizations. Museum of Anthropology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. Academic Press, New York. |
||||||
|
Sources
[1]
only mention very little archaeological evidence for weaponry for this period, and this does not include polearms. However, weapons made from wood and cloth have been documented for the later periods, so their absence in the archaeological record may be due to preservation bias.
[1]: Marcus and Flannery (1996) Zapotec Civilization: How urban society evolved in Mexico’s Oaxaca Valley. Flannery and Marcus (1983) The Cloud People: divergent evolution of the Zapotec and Mixtec civilizations. Museum of Anthropology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. Academic Press, New York. |
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|
Coded present due to the following in contemporary Chinese sources: "Even with strong crossbows that shoot far, and long halberds that hit at a distance, the Hsiung-nu would not be able to ward them off. If the armors are sturdy and the weapons sharp, if the repetition crossbows shot far, and the platoons advance together, the Hsiung-nu will not be able to withstand. If specially trained troops are quick to release (their bows) and the arrows in a single stream hit the target together, then the leather outfit and wooden shields of the Hsiung-nu will not be able to protect them. If they dismount and fight on foot, when swords and halberds clash as [the soldiers] come into close quarters, the Hsiung-nu, who lack infantry training, will not be able to cope."
[1]
According to Nikolay Kradin, (pers. comm.) halberds were not used in this period.
[2]
[1]: Nicola Di Cosmo. 2002. Ancient China and Its Enemies: The Rise of Nomadic Power in East Asian History. Cambridge University Press. Cambridge, p. 203 [2]: (Kradin, Nikolay. Personal Communication to Jill Levine, Dan Hoyer, and Peter Turchin. April 2020. Email) |
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|
Coded present due to the following in a slightly earlier Chinese source: "Even with strong crossbows that shoot far, and long halberds that hit at a distance, the Hsiung-nu would not be able to ward them off. If the armors are sturdy and the weapons sharp, if the repetition crossbows shot far, and the platoons advance together, the Hsiung-nu will not be able to withstand. If specially trained troops are quick to release (their bows) and the arrows in a single stream hit the target together, then the leather outfit and wooden shields of the Hsiung-nu will not be able to protect them. If they dismount and fight on foot, when swords and halberds clash as [the soldiers] come into close quarters, the Hsiung-nu, who lack infantry training, will not be able to cope."
[1]
Nikolay Kradin (pers. comm.) writes that halberds were not present in this period.
[2]
[1]: Nicola Di Cosmo. 2002. Ancient China and Its Enemies: The Rise of Nomadic Power in East Asian History. Cambridge University Press. Cambridge, p. 203 [2]: (Kradin, Nikolay. Personal Communication with Jill Levine, Dan Hoyer, and Peter Turchin. Email. April 2020) |
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|
Sources
[1]
only mention very little archaeological evidence for weaponry for this period, and this does not include polearms. However, weapons made from wood and cloth have been documented for the later periods, so their absence in the archaeological record may be due to preservation bias.
[1]: Marcus and Flannery (1996) Zapotec Civilization: How urban society evolved in Mexico’s Oaxaca Valley. Flannery and Marcus (1983) The Cloud People: divergent evolution of the Zapotec and Mixtec civilizations. Museum of Anthropology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. Academic Press, New York. |
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|
Sources
[1]
only mention very little archaeological evidence for weaponry for this period, and this does not include polearms. However, weapons made from wood and cloth have been documented for the later periods, so their absence in the archaeological record may be due to preservation bias.
[1]: Marcus and Flannery (1996) Zapotec Civilization: How urban society evolved in Mexico’s Oaxaca Valley. Flannery and Marcus (1983) The Cloud People: divergent evolution of the Zapotec and Mixtec civilizations. Museum of Anthropology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. Academic Press, New York. |
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|
Weapons other than obsidian swords, bows and arrows, slings, spears and atlatls are not known for this period.
[1]
[1]: Flannery and Marcus (1983) The Cloud People: divergent evolution of the Zapotec and Mixtec civilizations. Museum of Anthropology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. Academic Press, New York. |
||||||
|
"Little is known about warfare in Mesoamerica before the Middle Formative [...] warfare was relatively unorganized, conducted by small groups armed with unspecialized tool-weapons".
[1]
[1]: (Hassig 1992: 12-13) Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/E9VHCKDG. |
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|
Inferred from the fact that sources such as Hassig do not mention this weapon in lists and descriptions of weapons known to have been used in Teotihuacan.
[1]
[1]: (Hassig 1992: 47-48) Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/E9VHCKDG. |
||||||
|
There was no significant change in arms compared to the Classic period—thrusting spears and atlatls continued to dominate.
[1]
[1]: (Hassig 1992: 82) Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/E9VHCKDG. |
||||||
|
"Little is known about warfare in Mesoamerica before the Middle Formative [...] warfare was relatively unorganized, conducted by small groups armed with unspecialized tool-weapons".
[1]
[1]: (Hassig 1992: 12-13) Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/E9VHCKDG. |
||||||
|
Not included in the following: "Thrusting spears became the primary combat weapons [in the Late Formative situation] as they spread throughout Mesoamerica. Clubs persisted, but declined [...] maces also declined. [...] The distribution of slingstones throughout Mesoamerica indicates the continued use".
[1]
[1]: (Hassig 1992: 31) Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/E9VHCKDG. |
||||||
|
Not included in the following: "Thrusting spears became the primary combact weapons [in the Late Formative situation] as they spread throughout Mesoamerica. Clubs persisted, but declined [...] maces also declined. [...] The distribution of slingstones throughout Mesoamerica indicates the continued use".
[1]
[1]: (Hassig 1992: 31) Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/E9VHCKDG. |
||||||
|
"Little is known about warfare in Mesoamerica before the Middle Formative [...] warfare was relatively unorganized, conducted by small groups armed with unspecialized tool-weapons".
[1]
[1]: (Hassig 1992: 12-13) Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/E9VHCKDG. |
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|
"Most of the basic Mesoamerican armaments were in existence at this time [Classic period] - atlatls, darts, and spears, we well as clubs (bladed and unbladed), shields, cotton body armor, and unit standards [...] This military organization and technology was carried forward and elaborated on first by Toltecs and then by Aztecs".
[1]
[1]: (Hassig 1992: 5) Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/E9VHCKDG. |
||||||
|
Sources
[1]
only mention very little archaeological evidence for weaponry for this period, and this does not include polearms. However, weapons made from wood and cloth have been documented for the later periods, so their absence in the archaeological record may be due to preservation bias.
[1]: Marcus and Flannery (1996) Zapotec Civilization: How urban society evolved in Mexico’s Oaxaca Valley. Flannery and Marcus (1983) The Cloud People: divergent evolution of the Zapotec and Mixtec civilizations. Museum of Anthropology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. Academic Press, New York. |
||||||
|
Relative to this period, sources only mention the atlatl and spears.
[1]
However, weapons made from wood and cloth have been documented for the later periods, so the absence of weapons other than the atlatl and spears in the archaeological record may be due to preservation bias.
[1]: Marcus and Flannery (1996) Zapotec Civilization: How urban society evolved in Mexico’s Oaxaca Valley. Flannery and Marcus (1983) The Cloud People: divergent evolution of the Zapotec and Mixtec civilizations. Museum of Anthropology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. Academic Press, New York. |
||||||
|
Sources only mention bows and arrows, muskets, war-clubs, knives, and hatchets
[1]
. It should be noted that sources that specifically describe the way the Illinois Confederation waged war are relatively rare.
[1]: Illinois State Museum, The Illinois, Technology: Weapons (2000), http://www.museum.state.il.us/muslink/nat_amer/post/htmls/te_houses.html |
||||||
|
Relative to this period, sources only mention the atlatl and spears.
[1]
However, weapons made from wood and cloth have been documented for the later periods, so the absence of weapons other than the atlatl and spears in the archaeological record may be due to preservation bias.
[1]: Marcus and Flannery (1996) Zapotec Civilization: How urban society evolved in Mexico’s Oaxaca Valley. Flannery and Marcus (1983) The Cloud People: divergent evolution of the Zapotec and Mixtec civilizations. Museum of Anthropology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. Academic Press, New York. |
||||||
|
The Indo-Greeks were most likely to have been influenced and equipped in the tradition of the Macedonian style adopted by their Bactrian-Greek forbearers. They presumably wore the muscled breastplate made of metal scales and stripped with leather. Military adventurers and mercenaries from the Mediterranean took part in campaigns into India (attracted by India’s rumored wealth) and were present in military colonies; and they may provide more circumstantial evidence of the types of military equipment used by the Indo-Greeks. In addition, depictions on coins provide evidence of plate armour and the Boeotian helmet of the Alexandrian cavalrymen.
[1]
One issue that remains unclear is how many, if any, of the reforms taking place were in reaction to Roman military innovations trickling into the Indo-Greek Kingdoms. Therefore, the coding reflects Greek military technology from an earlier period.
[2]
[1]: Docherty, Paddy. The Khyber Pass: a history of empire and invasion. Union Square Press, 2008. pp. 64-66 [2]: Lee, Mireille M. "Hellenistic Infantry Reform in the 160s BC, by Nicholas Sekunda.(Studies on the History of Ancient and Medieval Art of Warfare 5.) Oficyna Naukowa MS, Lodz 2001. |
||||||
|
Not mentioned in detailed descriptions/lists of finds from Mehrgarh. "War technology is not well represented" before the Indus period.
[1]
[1]: (Kenoyer 1991: 347) Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/A7DS8UKX. |
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|
Not included in list of metal artefacts (including weapons) found at Pirak, the best studied site: “[At Pirak] Several metal artifacts (flat axes and daggers) have shapes known from Harappan sites, but others (moulded daggers and arrowheads) represent technological innovations.”
[1]
[1]: (Jarrige 2000: 353) Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/R7PUFAT5/q/jarrige. |
||||||
|
Not mentioned in Cork’s (2005, 2006) reviews of evidence that the Harappans engaged in warfare.
[1]
[2]
[1]: (Cork 2005) Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/ECMD5V2D/q/cork. [2]: (Cork 2006) Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/IQQCEMPC/q/cork. |
||||||
|
Not mentioned in Cork’s (2005, 2006) reviews of evidence that the Harappans engaged in warfare.
[1]
[2]
[1]: (Cork 2005) Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/ECMD5V2D/q/cork. [2]: (Cork 2006) Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/IQQCEMPC/q/cork. |
||||||
|
Pikehead from near Tarsus
[1]
. Halberd was recovered from Mahmatlar
[2]
.
[1]: Stronach D., "The Development and Diffusion of Metal Types in Early Bronze Age Anatolia", In: "Anatolian Studies", Vol. 7 (1957), p. 116. [2]: Stronach D., "The Development and Diffusion of Metal Types in Early Bronze Age Anatolia", In: "Anatolian Studies", Vol. 7 (1957), p. 121. |
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|
no record of such weapons
|
||||||
|
No information in the archaeological evidence for this time
|
||||||
|
Spears were used by the Iroquois in close combat, and spear points have been found lodged in many human bones from this period.
[1]
Sources do not mention polearms.
[1]: (Engelbrecht 2003: 6) Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/FJ3EAI76. |
||||||
|
Most sources only refer to bows and arrows
[1]
, and even they appear to have been used mostly for hunting, not warfare, judging from the fact that skeletons pierced with arrowpoints become common only later. Indeed, there is little evidence for warfare in the region up until "[l]ate in the first millennium AD".
[2]
[1]: (Blitz and Porth 2013, 89-95) [2]: (Milner, Chaplin and Zavodny 2013, 96-97) Milner, George, George Chaplin, and Emily Zavodny. 2013. “Conflict and Societal Change in Late Prehistoric Eastern North America.” Evolutionary Anthropology 22: 96-102. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/collectionKey/PAF8KM8K/itemKey/QR77EGA6 |
||||||
|
Most sources only refer to bows and arrows
[1]
, and even they appear to have been used mostly for hunting, not warfare, judging from the fact that skeletons pierced with arrowpoints become common only later. Indeed, there is little evidence for warfare in the region up until "[l]ate in the first millennium AD".
[2]
[1]: (Blitz and Porth 2013, 89-95) [2]: (Milner, Chaplin and Zavodny 2013, 96-97) Milner, George, George Chaplin, and Emily Zavodny. 2013. “Conflict and Societal Change in Late Prehistoric Eastern North America.” Evolutionary Anthropology 22: 96-102. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/collectionKey/PAF8KM8K/itemKey/QR77EGA6 |
||||||
|
Most sources only refer to bows and arrows
[1]
, and even they appear to have been used mostly for hunting, not warfare, judging from the fact that skeletons pierced with arrowpoints become common only later. Indeed, there is little evidence for warfare in the region up until "[l]ate in the first millennium AD".
[2]
[1]: (Blitz and Porth 2013, 89-95) [2]: (Milner, Chaplin and Zavodny 2013, 96-97) Milner, George, George Chaplin, and Emily Zavodny. 2013. “Conflict and Societal Change in Late Prehistoric Eastern North America.” Evolutionary Anthropology 22: 96-102. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/collectionKey/PAF8KM8K/itemKey/QR77EGA6 |
||||||
|
Code checked by Peter Peregrine. Previous notes: Archaeological evidence for warfare appears to "only" include "[d]efensive structures around villages, violent injuries on human remains, "trophy heads," the abandonment of regions, and the positioning of sites in ever more defensive positions"
[1]
, though a few weapon types can be cautiously inferred, such as bow and arrows and spears
[2]
, and, at a later date, firearms
[3]
.
[1]: G. Gibbon, Oneota, in P. Peregrine, M. Ember and Human Relations Area Files, Inc. (eds.) Encyclopedia of Prehistory: Volume 6: North America (2001), p. 391 [2]: P.S. Martin, G.I. Quimby and D.Collier, Indians Before Columbus (1947), p. 316 [3]: Illinois State Museum, Late Prehistoric, Technology: Weapons (2000), http://www.museum.state.il.us/muslink/nat_amer/pre/htmls/lp_weapons.html |
||||||
|
Present due to the following in contemporary Chinese sources, which are relevant for gaining insight on the weapons and armor of Steppe Nomads. In use in China since at least the much earlier Shang dynasty. "Even with strong crossbows that shoot far, and long halberds that hit at a distance, the Hsiung-nu would not be able to ward them off. If the armors are sturdy and the weapons sharp, if the repetition crossbows shot far, and the platoons advance together, the Hsiung-nu will not be able to withstand. If specially trained troops are quick to release (their bows) and the arrows in a single stream hit the target together, then the leather outfit and wooden shields of the Hsiung-nu will not be able to protect them. If they dismount and fight on foot, when swords and halberds clash as [the soldiers] come into close quarters, the Hsiung-nu, who lack infantry training, will not be able to cope."
[1]
[1]: Nicola Di Cosmo. 2002. Ancient China and Its Enemies: The Rise of Nomadic Power in East Asian History. Cambridge University Press. Cambridge, p. 203 |
||||||
|
"In the seventh century the Arab Caliphate overran the Sāssānian Empire and, as far as we can tell, no great changes took place in the Persian equipment then or for a long time afterwards."
[1]
"The dearth of illustrative material for the greater part of six centuries is largely due to the wanton destruction caused by two savage invasions from the east and only such finds as the stucco figures from Kara-shar [Central Asian warrior, eighth to tenth century] tell us that in all this period there had been little change."
[1]
Not mentioned in the sources so far consulted.
[1]: (Robinson 1967) Robinson, H. Russell. 1967. Oriental Armour. Walker and Co. New York. |
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|
Coded inferred present as they could be used by indigenous forces under British command? Ed.
|
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|
These do not appear to be included in depictions of "warriors" in North Yemeni rock-art from the Late Neolithic and Bronze Age, as reproduced in Jung (1991).
[1]
However, Jung himself does not state these were not in use, nor does he remark on their absence in said depictions.
[1]: (Jung 1991) Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/JP9KX5BK. |
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