We tend to think of Medieval knights as wearing heavy plate armor but in reality much of their time chain mail made up much of their defenses. Medieval chain mail armor was remarkably effective...
What does an archer do when there are no more arrows left to fire? Is his job for the day done? In the realm of medieval warfare, after the arrows had been launched, the life of a bowman took a new...
Medieval archers faced a daunting challenge when attempting to defeat knights clad in full plate armor . They turned to a combination of weaponry, strategy, and ingenuity to surmount this formidable...
It’s not the first time archaeologists in Norway have discovered ancient arrows melting out of mountainsides. But it is the first time arrows made from mussel shells have been found. Another Treasure...
Norway’s Secrets of the Ice team have found a perfectly-preserved, ancient arrow in the Langfonne ice patch, which dates to the north European Iron Age period (500 BC-800 AD). Rapid melting and...
Sometime in deep-history the much-restricted punch and thump was weaponized and replaced with the club. Eventually, the requirement to injure life outside one’s reach birthed the throwing club and...
Fittingly, archaeologists who explore landscapes exposed by glacial melt are known as glacial archaeologists. In 2018, a team of these specialized experts were dispatched to the ice-covered mountains...
Dozens of ancient arrows dating from the Neolithic to the Viking Era have melted out of the Langfonne ice sheet in Norway. In 2014 and 2016, reindeer bones and antlers, stone and river shell...
A study has revealed the amazing power of the English medieval longbow. British researchers have found that they caused horrific injuries, based on their study of human remains. They have likened the...
The reign of Harold Godwinson, the last Saxon King of England, is mostly remembered for its ignoble end, a victim of war at the Battle of Hastings in 1066 when William of Normandy came to conquer...
Jebe was a prominent Mongolian general who served under Genghis Khan. He was a converted enemy soldier who lucked out after shooting an arrow at the infamous Khan during battle. In a strange turn of...
In an astonishing find, archaeologists in China located a 2,200-year-old crossbow in pristine condition buried with the vast army of terracotta warriors at the excavation pit at Xi’an, Shaanxi...
The Scythian bow was the AK-47 of the Ancient Near East and the weapon of choice to dominate the battlefield. Even though the bow was uniquely designed to deliver the utmost damage, the arrow itself...
Harald Hardrada of Norway used cunning and surprising tactics to bring down foes. Although he was wounded in the face during one of his campaigns, he continued to see victory after victory. [Read...
A team of archaeologists working at the Odeon site in Bulgaria’s second largest city Plovdiv, have announced the discovery of a mediaeval tomb that includes human remains and an arrow. Tomb Includes...
In 2015, it was reported that a bronze arrowhead was discovered to have been lodged in the spine of a warrior. Whilst an injury like this would have normally been fatal, it seems that this ancient...
Long before modern warfare, there was a time of knights in shining armor atop equally armored horses fighting for the hand of a maiden or in pitched battle. However, the weapons that these knights...
Much is known about the ancient Mongol military and their incredible victories on the battlefield, but little is ever discussed about their arms, armor, horses, and logistics. What gear did they use...
Much is known about the ancient Mongol military and their incredible victories on the battlefield, but little is ever discussed about their arms, armor, horses, and logistics. What gear did they use...
The steppe has produced many notable horse archers who brought terror and devastation to the known world during ancient times. But of the many steppe peoples who penetrated the civilized world, none...
In the ancient Near East, archery became the predominant means of launching sharp projectiles, replacing spear-throwing. The history of archery, however, may have originated further down south during...
The discovery of the body of an Iron Age Scythian warrior in central Kazakhstan shows that the warrior had survived a battle despite being wounded by a bronze headed arrow. The warrior was discovered...
