6.1:Introduction
Before analysing the structural relationships found in Australian spears and spearthrowers the performance details of hand thrown spears will be compared with those thrown with the spearthrower. This is necessary if the range of performance characteristics extant in the technology is to be adequately correlated with structural variation and use.
The possession of such a long-distance weapon enormously increased the effectiveness of hunters who had to kill swiftly moving game in country where good cover was scanty." (Hawkes and Vfooley,1963:145)
"The developement of a new method of casting a spear with greater force over greater distances would have a predictable
impact on existing technologies." (Luebbers,1978:245)
It enables a man to throw a spear with much force and its perfect adaption to the uses for which it is designed, strengthens one's belief in the natural genius of this people "
(Smyth,1878,I:310)
These quotations are a sample of the many similar general statements made about the advantages of the spearthrower. In summary, the weapon is seen as capable of increasing the force, velocity, accuracy and distance of the spear cast. In reality, however, none of these assumptions is supported as a completely
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accurate generalisation. The hypothesis that the spearthrower increases spear performance in comparison with hand thrown spears will be examined in this chapter using the ethnographic sources.
6.2:Technological Comparison
The proposition that one technology is superior to another is in reality very difficult to test, especially for the prehistorian, because it ultimately requires some assessment of the technology's efficiency at a specific task performance. As seen from section 1:4 there are in theory an extremely large number of optimisations whereby improvement in efficiency is possible. In reality, therefore, one technology can only be claimed to be more efficient than another if the optimisation is specified. Naturally, a technology designed and used for one purpose when compared with another in terms of the latter's optimisation will appear
inefficient. It may be questioned, however, whether this inefficiency is meaningful in arguments which require the use of holistic statements of general efficieny ie., evolutionary arguments.
The failure to realise the need for optimisational equivalence could lead to the use of ethnographic comparisons to support the above hypothesis which are not completely valid. Holistic statements of efficiency or advantage for the spearthrower over the hand thrown spear have no empirical or theoretical basis. The assumption of advantages is not supported by the ethnography, which has not been extensively referred to in support of statments similar to those quoted above.
6.3:Hand Thrown Spears on the Mainland
For mainland Australia there are very few references to the
distance and accuracy to which hand spears were thrown. Eyre
(1845:306) described four types, mainly from the Adelaide tribe, which he claimed could be thrown with "force and accuracy" some 30-40
feet (9-12m). Cawthorne (1844:51) also noted a maximum range of
12-15 yards (ll-14m) for a spear form the Adelaide tribe. Giles
(1889:10) claims an accuracy of 40-50 yards (36-46m), for Central
Australian hand thrown spears. Horne and Aiston (1924:79) observed
that the hand spear of the Dieri and Wangkanguru from the Lake Eyre region was not accurate beyond 20 yards (18m), and finally Spencer
and Gillen (1928:690) recorded the range of maximum distances to
which nine Melville Islanders throw a spear as being from 31.8-43.7m with a mean of 37m.
None of these examples could, however, be accurately compared with any distance for a spear throwen by a spearthrower because they are far from being technologically equivalent in use or design. For
example Horne and Aiston (1924:79) state that the Dieri and the
Wongkanguru seldom throw the spear preferring to use it as a lance. As they are not generally used for throwing the weapon would not be designed for either distance or accuracy (see Browne,1898 for a more
detailed description of its use). Cawthorn (1844:51) claimed that
the weapon he described was used exclusively for warfare. His
observation that the spears were held in the middle may indicate that
the position of the centre of gravity (COG) WDuld have made them
Page 107 m ention t h a t th e M e lv ille I s l a n d e r s c o u ld p ro b a b ly have thrown f u r t h e r i f th e s p e a r were l i g h t e r . At 41bs (1.8kg) th e s p e a r used fo r th e t e s t i s o v e r tw ic e th e w eig h t o f an Olympic j a v e l i n and p ro b a b ly in th e o r d e r o f t h r e e tim e s h e a v ie r th a n th e mean mass f o r hand thrown s p e a r s in g e n e r a l ( c f . O akley e t . a l . ,1 9 7 7 :2 4 -6 ; P al t e r ,1 9 7 7 ). G i l e s ' (1889:10) i s u n s p e c if ic a s to th e c irc u m sta n c e s in which he made h i s o b s e r v a tio n . I t may, how ever, be e x a g g e ra te d in th e l i g h t o f G o u ld 's (1970:2) comment t h a t he o v e r s t a t e d th e ran g e and a c c u ra c y o f C e n tra l A u s t r a lia n (CA) s p e a r s throw n by ‘ th e s p e a r th r o w e r , and t h a t th e hand s p e a r in C e n tra l A u s t r a l i a i s used o n ly a s a f i g h t i n g la n c e .
A ll th e c o n t i n e n t a l e v id en c e a ls o comes from p e o p le who made l i t t l e use o f th e hand thrown s p e a r f o r b a s ic s u b s i s t a n c e . The D ie ri and Wangkanguru used th e boomerang and throw ing s t i c k a s th e m ajor elem en t in t h e i r b a l l i s t i c te c h n o lo g y (Horne and A is to n ,1 9 2 4 ). The A d e la id e t r i b e d e s c rib e d by Cawthorn (1844) used th e reed sp e a r and sp e a rth ro w e r f o r h u n tin g and th e hand s p e a r e x c lu s iv e ly f o r f i g h t i n g . The s t a t u s o f th e s p e a r on M e lv ille I s . i s d i f f i c u l t to a s s e s s . D avidson (1936:456) c o n s id e r s t h a t th e hand sp e a r was m a in ta in e d in i t s e x tre m e ly heavy form f o r a number o f " c u l t u r a l " re a s o n s . A lth o u g h , G raebner (1 9 1 3 :7 , p l a t e 2) c la im s to ’ i l l u s t r a t e a s p e a rth ro w e r from th e i s l a n d , Spencer and G ille n (1928:670) m a in ta in t h a t th e y were n o t u se d . In any c a se th e I s l a n d e r s seem to have been aim ing fo r some p erform ance c h a r a c t e r i s t i c o th e r th a n long d i s t a n c e s . None o f th e s e exam ples c o u ld th e r e f o r e be s u c c e s s f u l l y used as a com parison w ith sp ea rth o w e r perform ance on th e m a in la n d .
6 . 4 : The Tasm anians and th e R est o f th e Wbrld
The o n ly A b o rig in a l group who wauld b e g in to su p p ly an a c c u r a te com parison f o r th e hand thrown s p e a r w ith th e sp e a rth ro w e r a r e th e T asm anians. As th e y a p p ear to h as been u n f a m ilia r w ith th e s p e a rth ro w e r and boomerang ( J o n e s ,1 9 7 7 :1 9 7 ), th e hand s p e a r was used fo r b o th h u n tin g and f ig h t i n g ; th e o n ly o th e r elem en t o f b a l l i s t i c te c h n o lo g y b e in g a throw ing s t i c k .
The d i s t a n c e s re c o rd ed in th e e t h n o - h i s t o r i c a l l i t e r a t u r e f o r Tasmanian s p e a r s ra n g e from 40 to 70 y a rd s (see R o th ,1 8 9 9 :7 1 ). Jo n e s (1977:197) a ls o c o n s id e r e s ra n g e s o f 100m to a ls o have been p o s s i b l e . A lthough t h e r e i s some v a r i a t i o n a l l th e ra n g e s a r e c o n s i s t e n t l y much h ig h e r th a n th o se re c o rd e d f o r th e m a in la n d . A lthough th e r e i s no m easured a sse ssm e n t o f a c c u ra c y t h i s a ls o a p p e a rs to have been g r e a t e r (see R o th ,1899).
Tasmanian s p e a r s ware made from a s i n g l e stem o f t e a t r e e Leptospermum s p . , w ith th e d i s t a l end being sim p ly sh arp en ed to a c o n ic a l p o i n t . N o e tlin g (1911) reco rd ed th e l a s t seven rem aining exam ples o f th e s e s p e a r s in th e Tasmanian Museum. T h e ir a v erag e le n g th was j u s t under 4m (3.917m) w ith a ra n g e o f maximum th ic h n e s s e s from . 2 3 - . 13mm and a mean mass o f .614 k g . N o e tlin g (1911) a ls o n o ted t h a t th e COG v a r ie d betw een .2 7 -.2 9 L . A r e - a n a l y s i s o f th e s e d a t a , how ever, showed th e c e n t r e o f g r a v i t y to be betw een .3 3 -.3 6 L , w hich i s n o t s u p p o rte d by L y n e 's (R o th ,1899:70) o b s e r v a tio n t h a t th e maximum th ic k n e s s was o n ly 20" from th e t i p . In any c a s e th e s p e a r s wDuld, in th e o r y , s t i l l have g r e a t e r h ig h t r a j e c t o r y s t a b i l i t y th a n many s p e a r s throw n by th e sp e a rth ro w e r ( a t l e a s t 80% o f th e s p e a rs
Page 109 thrown by th e sp e a rth ro w e r m easured by P a l t e r , 1977 had COGS > .3 6 ) .
The c o n s i s t e n t l y long d i s t a n c e s re c o rd ed by th e e t h n o - h i s t o r i c a l s o u rc e s in c o m b in atio n w ith th e forw ard p o s i t i o n o f th e COG i n d i c a t e s t h a t th e Tasm anians were c a p a b le o f hand throw ing a r e l a t i v e l y heavy s p e a r w ith a h ig h v e l o c i t y and p o t e n t i a l l y enough i n f l i g h t s t a b i l i t y to be a c c u r a te o v er some x m e tr e s . A ccording to Toyoshima and M yashita (1973) t h i s wauld r e q u ir e a c o m b in atio n o f h ig h s k i l l and s tro n g p h y s iq u e s . In f a c t m ost o f th e e t h n o - h i s t o r i c a l s o u rc e s make <a p o in t o f commenting on th e d e x t e r i t y w ith v\hich th e Tasm anians h an d led th e s p e a r .
I t h as been s t a t e d t h a t th e Tasm anians were c a p a b le o f im p a rtin g lo n g itu d in a l s p in to th e s p e a r , a p p a r e n tly to in c r e a s e th e i n f l i g h t s t a b i l i t y ( N o e tlin g ,1911:82; J o n e s , 1 9 7 7 :1 9 6 ). The e v id e n c e f o r t h i s i s , how ever, m in im al, b e in g based on a s i n g l e e t h n o - h i s t o r i c a l s o u r c e . Mrs P r in s e p s s t a t e s t h a t : " th e y p o is e i t f o r a few seco n d s in th e hand t i l l i t a lm o st s p in s " (R o th ,1 8 9 9 :7 1 ), w hich c o u ld e q u a lly mean t h a t i t was h e ld a t i t s COG. Modern j a v e l i n th ro w e rs im p a rt s p in to th e s h a f t which can be a s g r e a t a s 30 r e v o lu tio n s p er sec o n d . There i s , how ever, some d isa g re e m e n t a s to th e m ag n itu d e and r e l a t i v e v a lu e o f i t s s t a b i l i s i n g e f f e c t s (D yson,19 6 2 ). A lthough i t c o u ld be more e f f e c t i v e i f th e s p e a r had an i n f l i g h t b e h a v io u r which