obsidian core

josh stout · 18th March 2014, 02:29 AM

This is an obsidian core used to produce the long thin blades found on Mesoamerican war clubs. It was collected by my grandfather who typed the label sometime in the early seventies. The goal of most warfare of the time was to spill as much blood as possible, while capturing live captives potentially as additional sacrifices. There were wars over territory and resources just as there are today, but most battle appears to have been closer to a sporting event with lots of blood but not much killing by today’s standards. The thin obsidian blades were sharper than any steel, but would generally have produced shallow clean slices without much internal damage.

colin henshaw · 18th March 2014, 12:04 PM

An interesting object, thanks for posting. Obsidian also having being used historically as a weapon point/edge in some parts of Melanesia.

josh stout · 18th March 2014, 04:33 PM

I am amazed at the skill shown in this core. They are not uncommon artifacts, but this is the slimmest I have seen. The original would have been a flawless, slightly tapered cylinder. Each blade would have been flaked off by hitting along the edge at either end, producing slightly curved flakes a few millimeters thick. The final form shown here was the discarded center that is now too thin to produce any more blades. By the end of the process, going by the flake scars, each blade would have been about ten centimeters long, and a only half centimeter or less wide. Try doing that with glass.

Many Mesoamericans used this technique over a wide period of time. This example is probably Zapotec or Mixtec from between 500 and 2500 years ago.

Battara · 19th March 2014, 02:04 AM

Oh thank you so much for posting this. I have always been fascinated by the club-swords used by the Aztecs and Mayans.

18th March 2014, 02:29 AM	#1
josh stout Member Join Date: Mar 2007 Posts: 407	obsidian core This is an obsidian core used to produce the long thin blades found on Mesoamerican war clubs. It was collected by my grandfather who typed the label sometime in the early seventies. The goal of most warfare of the time was to spill as much blood as possible, while capturing live captives potentially as additional sacrifices. There were wars over territory and resources just as there are today, but most battle appears to have been closer to a sporting event with lots of blood but not much killing by today’s standards. The thin obsidian blades were sharper than any steel, but would generally have produced shallow clean slices without much internal damage. Attached Images

18th March 2014, 12:04 PM	#2
colin henshaw Member Join Date: Jan 2008 Posts: 1,430	An interesting object, thanks for posting. Obsidian also having being used historically as a weapon point/edge in some parts of Melanesia.

18th March 2014, 04:33 PM	#3
josh stout Member Join Date: Mar 2007 Posts: 407	I am amazed at the skill shown in this core. They are not uncommon artifacts, but this is the slimmest I have seen. The original would have been a flawless, slightly tapered cylinder. Each blade would have been flaked off by hitting along the edge at either end, producing slightly curved flakes a few millimeters thick. The final form shown here was the discarded center that is now too thin to produce any more blades. By the end of the process, going by the flake scars, each blade would have been about ten centimeters long, and a only half centimeter or less wide. Try doing that with glass. Many Mesoamericans used this technique over a wide period of time. This example is probably Zapotec or Mixtec from between 500 and 2500 years ago.

19th March 2014, 02:04 AM	#4
Battara EAAF Staff Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Louisville, KY Posts: 7,219	Oh thank you so much for posting this. I have always been fascinated by the club-swords used by the Aztecs and Mayans.