Weapons of Mississippi

1. ATLATLS, BOWS AND ARROWS, AND STRIKING WEAPONS: WEAPONS OF THE MISSISSIPPI INDIANS

3 ATLATLS, BOWS AND ARROWS, AND STRIKING WEAPONS WEAPONS OF THE MISSISSIPPI INDIANS The themes of control, technology, and centralization can be traced to the first appearance of weapons in what is now Mississippi . Native Mississippians spent most of their time in a desperate effort to control a hostile environment in order to survive. Therefore the weapons of the prehistoric period in Mississippi were largely for the purpose of hunting, with spears, initially equipped with fluted points, being the common weapon. As time passed, the early spear points went through a series of gradual changes that resulted in a lance-shaped projectile point with notches on the sides and corners. The craftsmen usually rubbed the bases and stem edges smooth and serrated the edges of the blade to create many small points of contact. Larger and cruder square-stemmed points followed, and later still, the points were made smaller and their bases usually rounded and narrowed toward the bottom.1 This progression shows that the native Mississippians worked energetically to perfect the weapon that was so critical to their survival. While the spear experienced these evolutionary modifications, the largest early leap in technology came with the atlatl, a device that used mechanical advantage to increase the distance and velocity of a spear 1 ATLATLS, BOWS AND ARROWS, AND STRIKING WEAPONS 4 thrown by hand. The atlatl showed the imagination, intelligence, and creativity of the native Mississippians. Even in these earliest times, man improved weapons using technology in revolutionary ways. Native Mississippian weapons technology produced other weapons, such as the bow and arrow and a variety of striking weapons. However, the technology involved in these weapons was no match for the outside technology introduced by the more centralized European society. The European metal pipe tomahawks, for example, proved more durable and powerful than the native wooden war clubs. The European metal technology that produced superior weapons was part of the same centralized society that could launch military expeditions to suppress the Indians. Even before the first contacts between the Europeans and the Indians,European centralization was creating a disparity in the weapons of the future adversaries . Once contact occurred, centralization would give the Europeans a decided weapons advantage. ATLATLS Technological advances expanded spears from exclusively being a stabbing weapon to one that could also be thrown with the help of an atlatl,or spear thrower.2 The atlatl was about eighteen inches long and was essentially a stick with a handle on one end and a hook or socket that engaged a light spear or“dart” on the other. Explanations of how the atlatl worked, as well as how effective it may have been, vary. The simplest and most common explanations argue that the atlatl in effect increases the length of the human arm, thereby increasing the amount of time during which force is imparted to the dart. By maintaining contact with the spear during a greater portion of the throw than does the unaided hand, the atlatl propels a light spear much faster and farther than it could be thrown by hand alone.3 Theories about how exactly the atlatl hurled the dart also vary, but perhaps the most likely explanation is that the procedure involved a straight trajectory in the launch path. According to this technique, ATLATLS, BOWS AND ARROWS, AND STRIKING WEAPONS 5 the marksman took aim with the atlatl by stretching his throwing arm behind his head. His shoulders were parallel to the projected line of fire, and the thrower’s weight was on his rear leg. The thrower held both the atlatl and dart with his fingers, while the dart was secured by a spur at the end of the atlatl. Rocking forward from the rear leg, the thrower then stepped toward the target with his front leg and planted his heel. While the upper body, arms, and atlatl had now moved forward, they had not yet changed their basic position from the aiming posture. With his leading foot and leg firmly planted, the thrower then rotated his upper body and shoulders from a line parallel to the throwing path to one perpendicular to it. His body weight was now completely forward of the leading leg, his shoulders were perpendicular to the line of fire, and his throwing arm was parallel to the shoulders with a ninety-degree bend at the elbow. At this point, the thrower released his finger...