XVIIth century war clubs image - wangrin

Woodland and Plains natives war clubs, XVIIIth century.

War Clubs encompass a wide variety of weapons used by the different tribes of Native American Indians. The first types of war clubs were simple bludgeoning weapons such as heavy bones, wooden clubs and stone clubs.
Examples of the bludgeoning types of war clubs were the jawbone club and the throwing stick or rabbit stick. The skills of the Flint Knappers increased and war clubs were specifically designed with wooden handles and sharpened stone edges which could be used as tools or weapons for throwing and close combat. Although these war clubs all had stone heads these primitive weapons were still deadly. The arrival of the Europeans, the white settlers and traders, introduced new ideas and technology. Later types of Native American war clubs replaced those made of stone, horn, bone and hardened woods with metals such as iron and steel.