TWG-26
John Jenkins Designs
Spears are perhaps the most common weapon type in human history and have been used in hunting since the palaeolithic era. Boars were hunted for their tusks, used in helmets, and lions were hunted as a noble pursuit and to teach agility and discipline.
The famous “Lion Hunt Dagger” from a grave in Mycenae depicts such an event. In hunting these dangerous animals, the spear was invaluable due to its flexibility and long reach. In Bronze Age warfare the spear was important, as it used much less bronze than large bladed weapons such as swords and double-edged axes. This meant lower class citizens could be armed with a spear, which meant it was easier to equip large bodies of men in times of war.
Longer spears would be wielded two handed and used in a thrusting motion (visible in frescoes from Pylos). The longer reach would have been invaluable if fighting against, or from the Bronze Age war chariots. Shorter spears were used one handed with a shield and could also be thrown, not dissimilar to the later Classical Greek phalanx.