1 Annotated Atlatl Bibliography John Whittaker Grinnell College version June 20, 2012 Introduction I began accumulating this bibliography around 1996, making notes for my own uses. Since I have access to some obscure articles, I thought it might be useful to put this information where others can get at it. Comments in brackets [ ] are my own comments, opinions, and critiques, and not everyone will agree with them. The thoroughness of the annotation varies depending on when I read the piece and what my interests were at the time. The many articles from atlatl newsletters describing contests and scores are not included. I try to find news media mentions of atlatls, but many have little useful info. There are a few peripheral items, relating to topics like the dating of the introduction of the bow, archery, primitive hunting, projectile points, and skeletal anatomy. Through the kindness of Lorenz Bruchert and Bill Tate, in 2008 I inherited the articles accumulated for Bruchert’s extensive atlatl bibliography (Bruchert 2000), and have been incorporating those I did not have in mine. Many previously hard to get articles are now available on the web - see for instance postings on the Atlatl Forum at the Paleoplanet webpage http://paleoplanet69529.yuku.com/forums/26/t/WAA-Links-References.html and on the World Atlatl Association pages at http://www.worldatlatl.org/ If I know about it, I will sometimes indicate such an electronic source as well as the original citation. The articles use a variety of measurements. Some useful conversions: 1”=2.54 cm 1’=30.48 cm 1 yard = .9144 m 1 cm = .394” 1 m = 3.28 feet (3’ 3 1/3”) 1 mile = 1.609 km 1 km = .622 miles 1 m/sec = 2.236936 mph 1 mph = .44704 m/sec 1 km/hr = .2778 m/sec = .622 mph 1 mph = 1.609 km/hr = 1.466 fps = .44704 m/sec 1 ft/sec = .6818 mph = .3048 m/sec 1 oz = 31.103 gm or 480 grains 1 grain = .0648 gm or .002 oz 1 gram = 15.43 grains or .032 oz 1 kg = 2.203 lbs 1 lb = .4535924 kg, 454 gm 1 ton = 2000 lbs = 908 kg, or .907 metric ton, 907 kg 1 metric ton, 1000 kg = 2205 lbs 9/5 x degrees C + 32 = degrees F 2 degrees F - 32 x 5/9 = degrees C XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX Ackerman, Robert E. s 1996 Cave 1, Lime Hills. In American Beginnings: The Prehistory and Paleoecology of Beringia. Frederick. H. West ed., pp. 470-477. University of Chicago Press, Chicago. SW Alaska, sparse artifacts include 10.7 cm long frag of antler or bone arrowhead slotted to fit microblades. Beveled end of what may be antler foreshaft, w ochre [sim to Clovis?] Pt is assoc w C14 dates 9530 +60 BP, sim to other pts like it in area (West 1996) [thus very early for bow and arrow if right]. Faunal remains w possible cultural modification from lower level w dates 13-15,000 BP. Adair, Robert K. o 1994 The Physics of Baseball 2nd ed. HarperCollins Publishers, New York. Ahler, Stanley A. and Phil R. Geib 2002 Why Flute? Folsom Point Design and Adaptation. Journal of Archaeological Science 27:799-820. Folsom fluting produces a very thin point that can be hafted in a split haft with only leading edge and tip exposed, allowing maximum penetration but controlling breakage so that only the tip breaks off and the point can be resharpened and reused many times. Probably an adaptation to mobile bison hunting where a reliable, maintainable weapon is needed, but where suitable material is not always available. [Assumes used with atlatl. Summarizes previous ideas on fluting, proposes a convincing hafting model.] Akerman, Kim x 1978 Notes on the Kimberley Stone-tipped Spear Focusing on the Point Hafting Mechanism. Mankind 2(4):486-489. On light spears 170 gm ave, 150-200 cm long, reed or bamboo with hardwood foreshaft, point attached by resin and sinew. Currently opalescent pyrex ovenware glass preferred for points at Kalumburu, bought for purpose, given to skilled craftsman, fractured with hot wire. Metal leaf points also made. Points often small, 1.5-2.0 cm long. Foreshaft notched but not split, lashed to prevent splitting, butt of point left thick. Resin molded around base of point and down shaft for strength. Impact fractures when hit hard object, shattering if miss in rocky country. Resharpening. Resin hafting advantages: allows point to come free rather than breaking as shaft vibrates in target, curved points can be aligned with shaft, neat join for better penetration, very small points can be used. Large ostentatious 3 pts more for gift exchange than use. Now made for tourist trade. Akerman, Kim o 2006 High-Tech, Low-Tech: Lithic Technology in the Kimberley Region of Western Australia. In Skilled Production and Social Reproduction. Jan Apel and Kjel Knutsson eds., pp. 323-346. Societas Archaeologica Upsaliensis, Uppsala. Ground-edge tools like axes, grinding equipment, unhafted flake blade and core cutting tools, hafted knives and scrapers, pressure flaked spearheads in 3 different lithic zones. Heat treatment of rock common. Kimberley points as spear heads, knives, trade goods. Descriptions of flaking process. Man might have 5-20 at one time, but renew or replace maybe 4/week. Glass favored, takes 15 + minutes. Composite spears 250-350 cm, ave wt 170 grams, so could be thrown with long spear thrower up to 140 yards, accurate to 80. Solid wood spears thrown with shorter desert style thrower often with adze on handle. Akerman, Kim 2010 To Make a Point – Ethnographic Reality and the Ethnographic and Experimental Replication of Australian Macroblades Known as Leilira. In Experiments and Interpretation of Traditional Technologies: Essays in Honor of Errett Callahan. Edited by Hugo Nami, pp. 407-430. Editiones de Arqueologia Contemporanea, Buenos Aires. Large flake blades, usually quartzite or silcrete, up to 240 mm, hafted in knob of resin as knives for men or women, or as spear tips. “technological observation in the recent ethnographic present may not always reveal the true nature of technological understanding and ability that existed in the traditional ethnographic past.” Quotes several detailed accounts of knapping. Many pieces rejected by knapper before successful blade, but at quarry, others might collect and use his rejects. Hard hammer percussion with large core resting on ground. Current knappers not as skillful – 1960s to 1980s selling blades hafted as knives or spears, but mostly using recovered quarry rejects. Blades for spearpoints have base thinned, hafted with beeswax. Those used in knives are not thinned, and a wooden “finial” may be added to the haft and decorated with totemic marks, but is non- functional. Some recent accounts of traditional knapping are flawed because the knappers observed remembered poorly or had never been very skilled. “some indigenous peoples try to discover for themselves how ‘the old people did it’. I have heard indigenous people describe how Kimberley points were made, by heating a flake of stone and carefully dripping water onto it.” Describes his replication, compares to Levallois technique. Akerman, Kim and Patrick McConvell x 2002 Wommera’ - The Technology and Terminology of the Multipurpose Spearthrower in Australia. Paper for ARCLING II Conference on the 4 Archaeology and Linguistics of Australia, Canberra 2002. Electronic document, URL http://crlc.anu.edu.au/arcling2/index.html Grey 1841 noted similarity Aust words for ‘throwing stick’: wamirra in New S Wales, amirra in Central Aust, midla in S Aust, mirra in W. Sydney area term wom-murrur or wommera became standard, changed to woomera. But common roots of words not clear, also much variation in spearthrower form and terms. Reflect spread of people/language, or spread of tool? Look at as diffusion of multipurp atl w stone adze. Revised Davidson typology. “Leaf-shaped” throwers assoc w sub-tropical regions, 5 types in W Aust and in central and W deserts. [Typology not usable because no illustrations given, descriptions too brief, appear to be only 2 leaf-shaped types instead of 5]. Leaf types used as dish, music, digging stick, adze (attached stone, tooth, or shell blade). Stone blades used into 1970s, + later for tourist trade. Thrower types that can have blades all assoc with -mirru- root in name. No arch evidence for dating, but some rock art. Lewis (1988) Arnhem Land rock art - long period no throwers, then early art w broad atl (like W desert type) starting ca 6000 BP, replaced by x- ray art w long narrow lath atl (like N Aust type) ca 2000-1000 BP Mirru and related roots also refer clubs in some areas, club words may come from thrower words. Lengthy discussion of sound changes and language relations to conclude many words are related, derive from single form *wamirra. Suggest broad type atl spread from Cape York Penninsula to west, perhaps w people. In N, atl type changed to lath-like when adopting composit reed spears, but kept old word. Akerman, Kim, Richard Fullager, and Annelou van Gijn x 2002 Weapons and wunan: production, function, and exchange of Kimberley points. Australian Aboriginal Studies 2002 (1): 13-42. NW Australia, bifacial pressure flaked points. Microscopic residues and use-wear. Change in production, design, function, and distribution through time. See lithic bibliography. Oral tales: culture hero Tjungkun made 1st spearthrower from limb with branch stub (later became long slender form with lashed on hook). Wodoi made 1st stone tipped spears to throw with them. Other myths, intro of pressure flaking by blanket lizard, dentate points made by nightjar etc. Kimberley and other points often used to tip long compound spears, also as knives, and for exchange.