Ancient Weaponry
A word about the weapons in the story.
The sword that Jadah takes from the Amalekite in the frist raid is an Egyptian Kopesh, a slashing sword of the sickle variety. This sword had a special “hook” at the end to pull away the enemy shield which allowed the swordsman to stab his opponent. The long, thin daggar he takes is an Amalekite copy of a stabbing sword of the period, though not quite the same. The one Jadah has did have edges and was about 25” in length with blade length of 15” to 16” and blade width of about 1½” and having no blood groove. Rather than a blood groove, it had a spine on both sides of the blade that sloped down rapidly and then gently sloped to the edge. It was not leaf shaped, as a regualr dagger, but went straight to the point.
Generally the groups of people in Canaan at that time period did not make their own weapons, but got them by either buying them from traders from Mesopotamia or Egypt or throught plunder. There is a metal smith in the village, and he can make weapons, though he does not have the means to make the finer blades for the kopesh or arrows made in Egypt and Mesopotamia. In fact, Egypt at that time period bought all its best arrows from Mesopotamia, as Egyptian made arrows were inferior to those of the Hurrians, Hittites, Assyrians and Babylonians. You will notice in the story that Jadah makes stone points for hunting arrows that he makes from materials purchased for that purpose. He also makes arrows to put the bronze heads on that get broken when he is hunting.
Slings were used more than the movies of today would indicate. In my research concerning slinging, I have found that slings could deliver death almost as certain as bows and arrows. The range of a sling rivaled and in some cases bested that of a bow, and certainly was longer ranged than a javelin. Lead bullets were used in military applications for slings, and Jadah does get some of these, though never uses them. They were the most deadly and the most accurate, being the most easily controlled object to sling as they were uniform in weight and symetrical. There were also pottery bullets in those days as well. For raiders and shepherds and defenders, Israel provides ample amounts of suitable sling stones, so neither of those play much of a part in this story. I will refrain from using foolish artwork depicting some goofy looking boy twirling a sling over his head, as this is not the way a sling is operated. The stone is slung over hand. Twirling a sling does not allow accurate slinging, as you will not be able to consistently control the point the stone is released from the sling. From my research, the best slingers began as young boys, because this takes a great amount of diligent practice and hand-eye coordiantion to accomplish. I read exerpts of Xenophon who said he had to employ slingers along with or in place of his bowyers to get his troops through some of the battles. I also read that the average Roman soldier was required to carry a sling and a pouch of bullets and know how to use it. A sling in the hand of a person who knows how to use it is a deadly weapon, and anyone who states a sling only stuns the enemy has not done the slightest amount of research. There is a History channel video on YouTube that shows unequivically a stone could have in fact killed Goliath.
Javelins were a common weapon in the ancient world, and were carried for two reasons. The first was to stab the enemy in close combat. The second was to throw and either wound or kill the enemy from a longer distance. I use the words “spear” and “javelin” interchangeably in the story. True, spears tended to be longer with a heavier and broader head, but that was not always the case. For raiders or Israelite defenders to use a lance would be impractical. In the days of the Judges of Israel, and ox goad was a basic javelin/spear. It was as long as any javelin and was often fitted with a small bronze point. This is why Shamgar could kill with an ox goad. It was not a flimsy stick, but rather a stout staff that could be used to block another shaft in the hands of an accomplished user. In my story there are no ox goads because there are no oxen. The Negev was not a place that would support herds of beef cattle, though the Amalekites did have some. I chose to include only sheep, goats, donkeys and a very few camels, some of which died. See my page on farming.
The sword that Jadah takes from the Amalekite in the frist raid is an Egyptian Kopesh, a slashing sword of the sickle variety. This sword had a special “hook” at the end to pull away the enemy shield which allowed the swordsman to stab his opponent. The long, thin daggar he takes is an Amalekite copy of a stabbing sword of the period, though not quite the same. The one Jadah has did have edges and was about 25” in length with blade length of 15” to 16” and blade width of about 1½” and having no blood groove. Rather than a blood groove, it had a spine on both sides of the blade that sloped down rapidly and then gently sloped to the edge. It was not leaf shaped, as a regualr dagger, but went straight to the point.
Generally the groups of people in Canaan at that time period did not make their own weapons, but got them by either buying them from traders from Mesopotamia or Egypt or throught plunder. There is a metal smith in the village, and he can make weapons, though he does not have the means to make the finer blades for the kopesh or arrows made in Egypt and Mesopotamia. In fact, Egypt at that time period bought all its best arrows from Mesopotamia, as Egyptian made arrows were inferior to those of the Hurrians, Hittites, Assyrians and Babylonians. You will notice in the story that Jadah makes stone points for hunting arrows that he makes from materials purchased for that purpose. He also makes arrows to put the bronze heads on that get broken when he is hunting.
Slings were used more than the movies of today would indicate. In my research concerning slinging, I have found that slings could deliver death almost as certain as bows and arrows. The range of a sling rivaled and in some cases bested that of a bow, and certainly was longer ranged than a javelin. Lead bullets were used in military applications for slings, and Jadah does get some of these, though never uses them. They were the most deadly and the most accurate, being the most easily controlled object to sling as they were uniform in weight and symetrical. There were also pottery bullets in those days as well. For raiders and shepherds and defenders, Israel provides ample amounts of suitable sling stones, so neither of those play much of a part in this story. I will refrain from using foolish artwork depicting some goofy looking boy twirling a sling over his head, as this is not the way a sling is operated. The stone is slung over hand. Twirling a sling does not allow accurate slinging, as you will not be able to consistently control the point the stone is released from the sling. From my research, the best slingers began as young boys, because this takes a great amount of diligent practice and hand-eye coordiantion to accomplish. I read exerpts of Xenophon who said he had to employ slingers along with or in place of his bowyers to get his troops through some of the battles. I also read that the average Roman soldier was required to carry a sling and a pouch of bullets and know how to use it. A sling in the hand of a person who knows how to use it is a deadly weapon, and anyone who states a sling only stuns the enemy has not done the slightest amount of research. There is a History channel video on YouTube that shows unequivically a stone could have in fact killed Goliath.
Javelins were a common weapon in the ancient world, and were carried for two reasons. The first was to stab the enemy in close combat. The second was to throw and either wound or kill the enemy from a longer distance. I use the words “spear” and “javelin” interchangeably in the story. True, spears tended to be longer with a heavier and broader head, but that was not always the case. For raiders or Israelite defenders to use a lance would be impractical. In the days of the Judges of Israel, and ox goad was a basic javelin/spear. It was as long as any javelin and was often fitted with a small bronze point. This is why Shamgar could kill with an ox goad. It was not a flimsy stick, but rather a stout staff that could be used to block another shaft in the hands of an accomplished user. In my story there are no ox goads because there are no oxen. The Negev was not a place that would support herds of beef cattle, though the Amalekites did have some. I chose to include only sheep, goats, donkeys and a very few camels, some of which died. See my page on farming.