Archaeologists have identified the oldest securely dated spear-throwers in the Andes, dating back roughly 5,000 years, after re-examining wooden hunting tools first dug up in the 1970s along Chile’s Atacama Desert coast.
The find extends the known history of this ancient weapon technology in South America and provides researchers with the first direct radiocarbon dates ever recorded for spear-throwers in the region.
The tools, known as estólicas, were recovered from the Caleta Huelén 42 site, located near the mouth of the Loa River in northern Chile. The settlement was first excavated between 1971 and 1973 and was home to a coastal community of hunter-gatherers who lived there between about 6,000 and 4,000 years ago.
Excavators originally found twelve spear-throwers at the site, along with hooks and other hunting gear. Most came from graves, while a few were buried in household trash.
New radiocarbon tests date tools to 5,000 years ago
The study, published in the journal Antiquity, involved a fresh look at nine of the original twelve tools, now held at the University of Antofagasta. Three of the artifacts could not be located.
Researchers sent wood samples from two of the spear-throwers for radiocarbon testing. The results dated the objects to around five thousand years ago, matching previously established dates from the base of the site’s shell midden.
The tools were carved from single pieces of hardwood. Some included leather or sinew wrapping on the handles, bone hooks at one end, and red pigment on the surface. Most shared a similar design: a handle, a flat, wide middle section, and a small hook at the tip that once held a dart.
Researchers say the tools closely resemble spear-throwers found elsewhere along Chile’s northern coast, particularly near Arica, and a similar artifact found far inland in Argentina.
Oldest spear-throwers linked to Andes hunting tradition
Benjamín Ballester, one of the study’s authors, of the University of Tarapacá in Chile, said the design similarities point to a shared hunting tradition that stretched between coastal and inland communities. He and his colleagues believe the tools were used mainly to hunt land animals, especially camelids such as llamas, rather than for fishing or marine hunting, which relied on harpoons instead.
According to the researchers, spear-throwers likely remained relevant along the coast for thousands of years before bows and arrows eventually replaced them sometime around the fifth century AD. Even after that shift, the two technologies may have overlapped for a period.
The discovery also highlights how much can still be learned from older museum collections without the need for new excavations, the team reported. Further research is being planned to pin down the wood species used and explore whether the tools’ origins date back even earlier than revealed by evidence currently available.
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