Arrowheads

Arrowheads
Description and Definition of Arrowheads: Arrowheads or Arrowpoints are the pointed head or striking tip of an arrow. An arrowhead point or tip made of stone, bone or horn which in general is less than 1 inches (25 mm) in length  and weighs under 15 grams. Arrowheads are regarded as Native American artefacts and are attributed no earlier than the Woodland phase of North American prehistory that is now generally viewed as a cultural developmental stage dating from about 3,200 to 1,000 years ago. Metal arrowheads were used following the introduction of different metals by the Europeans in the 1500 and 1600's.

Native American Arrowheads - Bows and Arrows
Arrows were the missiles shot from bows which were made from a straight thin shaft and usually feathered and barbed. An arrowhead was the blade or point that was made of bone or stone, and later metal that was fixed to an arrow. Arrowheads may be attached to the shaft of the arrow with a cap, a socketed tang, or inserted into a split in the shaft and held by a process called hafting which meant fitting the arrow shaft to the arrowheads. The size and shape of the arrowheads were determined by the purpose of the weapon and the skill of the weapon maker.

Native American Arrowheads - Artefacts
Native American arrowheads are referred to as artefacts in the archaeological sense meaning an object made by human work for simple or practical purposes. The manufacture of arrowheads was extremely important as they were indicative of the progress and technical advances made by groups of people. Experts have stated that:

"Hunting with a bow and arrow requires intricate multi-staged planning, material collection and tool preparation and implies a range of innovative social and communication skills."

Pictures of different Types of Arrowheads

Native American Arrowheads
Larger points are regarded as spearheads, dart points, lance points or knife blades and are associated with Arrowheads and spear throwing Atlatl weapon. Larger points are regarded as spearheads, dart points, lance points or knife blades and are associated with Arrowheads and spear throwing atlatl weapon. Arrowheads were fixed to an arrow, were smaller than spear points and penetrated skin more deeply than when fired by a bow.

Making Stone Arrowheads
The early arrowheads was made of a hard stone such as Flint that was sharpened into a projectile point by the process of Flintknapping. To make a projectile point, like an arrowhead, the piece of flint was directly struck with a hammerstone to remove large sharp flakes and break it into usable, thinner pieces of stone. The next step in making stone arrowheads is called pressure flaking. Pressure flaking was achieved by placing a pointed tool, such as an antler horn,  on the edge of the stone, and applying an inward pressure to the tool to remove a small, thin flake from the stone. The objective of pressure flaking was to shape and refine the projectile point - the arrowhead. Notching was the final step in making arrowheads. The notches were made using a combination of pressure flaking and abrading (grinding) to carve out the gaps that allow the arrowhead to be bound to an arrow shaft.

Types of Arrowheads - Clovis, Archaic, Woodland and Mississippian arrowheads

Identifying Different types of Arrowheads
The following chart helps to identify the different types of Arrowheads made by early Native Americans.

Chart Identifying Different Types of Arrowheads
	Type of Arrowheads Clovis / Fluted Point		A Clovis / Fluted Point used for Spears 14,000 years ago Characterized by its slim vertical shape and vertical flute up the center. Flutes are 'grooves' appearing in the central face of the Clovis
	Type of Arrowheads Archaic Side Notch		Archaic Side Notch 10,000 years ago Characterized by its symmetrical shape and large side notches
	Type of Arrowheads Archaic Bifurcate		A Bifurcate Point 9,000 years ago Characterized by its large divot in the center of the base and square or round lobes at the base
	Type of Arrowheads Archaic Dovetail		Archaic Dovetail 7,000 years ago Characterized by its base that flairs out like the tail of a dove
	Type of Arrowheads Archaic Pentagonal		A Pentagonal Point 6,500 years ago Characterized by its small base with straight sides that cut in to meet each other at the tip
	Type of Arrowheads Diagonal Notch		Archaic Diagonal Notch 6,000 years ago Characterized by its straight base and deep narrow notches chipped at 90 degree angles.
	Type of Arrowheads Archaic Bottleneck		A Bottleneck Point 5,000 years ago Characterized by its thin stemmed base and leaf shaped blade
	Type of Arrowheads Archaic Ashtabula		Ashtabula arrowhead 4,000 years ago Characterized by its shoulders that flair up and out - found only in Ohio and Pennsylvania.
	Type of Arrowheads Woodland Early Adena		Early Adena 3,000 years ago Characterized by its round stemmed base that flairs out to the shoulders
	Type of Arrowheads Woodland Late Adena		Late Adena 2,000 years ago Characterized by its broad blade and squared stemmed base that flairs out to the shoulders
	Type of Arrowheads Woodland Hopewell		A Hopewell Point 1,900 years ago Characterized by its rounded bases and corner notches
	Type of Arrowheads Woodland Intrusive Mound		A Woodland Intrusive Mound 1,500 years ago Characterized by for being narrow and having a flat straight base with sharp barbs at their notches
	Type of Arrowheads Mississippian Triangle		A Mississippian Triangle Point 1,000 years ago Characterized by its triangular shape and small size
Chart Identifying Different Types of Arrowheads

Arrowheads

• Chart, Description and definition of Arrowheads
• Materials required to make Arrowheads
• How to make Arrowheads - method of construction
• Interesting chart, facts and information about Native American Arrowheads for kids and schools
• Native American Weapons and chart
• Pictures of Arrowheads Chart

Arrowheads - Pictures and Videos of Native Americans
Native American Weapons - Arrowheads. Discover the interesting facts and information which relate to the History of Native Americans and the weapons they used such as Arrowheads. The pictures on this site show the weapons and tools that were used by various Native Indian tribes that can be used as a really useful educational history resource for kids and children of all ages. All of the articles and pages can be accessed via the Native Indian Tribes Index - a great educational resource for kids providing an unusual insight into their culture. We hope you enjoy watching the videos - just click and play - a great resource for gaining facts and information about the life of Native American Indians.