Throwing Stick - Distribution

Distribution

The throwing stick is a simple tool used in hunting small game and waterfowl. The Egyptians used throwing sticks to hunt ducks, as seen in several wall paintings. Tutankhamun was a known lover of duck hunting and used the throwing stick in his hunts. Gimel, the third letter of many Semitic alphabets, may have been named after a weapon that was either a staff sling or a throwing stick, ultimately deriving from a Proto-Sinaitic glyph based on an Egyptian hieroglyph. The Aborigines of Australia used the boomerang. Although returning boomerangs are found in many cultures and will return to the user if thrown properly, the choice weapon of most cultures was the heavy non-returning boomerang that could also be wielded as a club or knife for attacking close kangaroo, wallaby, and emu by using it as a stabbing weapon. Some Native American tribes such as the Hopi, as well as all southern California tribes, utilized the throwing stick to hunt rabbits and occasionally deer.

Other titles for the throwing stick are: rabbit stick, throwing club, killer stick, baton, boomerang, and kylie. The throwing stick can also be used as a weapon in human combat, though the heavy non-return boomerang was the only one truly effective in this use.