When is a point a projectile? morphology, impact fractures, scientific rigor, and the limits of inference

Abstract

Archaeologists have long sought a reliable means to identify whether certain pointed stone artifacts represent weapon armatures, and more specifically, whether specific types of pointed artifacts are associated with specific weapon technologies. These attempts have generally relied on ethnographic data; morphological, and more recently, morphometric, criteria; experimentation; use wear analyses; residue analyses; and combinations thereof. This paper is concerned with the reliability of established methods of identification of the stone arming tips of ancient weaponry, and in particular established means of differentiating weapon delivery technologies. The author presents a critical review of major attempts to isolate criteria intended to identify such artifacts and technologies; identifies deficiencies in the methodologies and criteria employed to date; and concludes that due to underlying subjective methods and a lack of comprehensive experimentation, current methods for identifying weapon armatures and delivery technologies lack sufficient scientific rigor.