Experimental Methodologies: An Analysis of Ancient Bronze Crossbow Bolt Production

Summary

This is an abstract from the "SAA 2025: Individual Abstracts" session, at the 90th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

This pilot research replicates the production of Dong Son trilobate bronze crossbow bolts using sandstone molds. The Dong Son site of Co Loa, located near Hanoi, Vietnam, is associated with the production of crossbow technology, as several thousand bronze bolts have been recovered archaeologically. However, there has been very little research done on crossbow technology in northern Vietnam, including research on the bronze bolts and on the sandstone molds used to produce them. Thus, the goal of this project is to add to Dong Son crossbow research by testing the effectiveness and efficiency of sandstone molds to produce bronze crossbow bolts. To this end, 10 molds were crafted from various sources (e.g., Indiana Sandstone), and casting bronze into each one until the mold became unusable. The molds were separated into three groups: heat treated, oil, and untreated. This poster presents project findings and helps to illustrate how the replication experiments can help determine possible methods used by ancient people to maximize the effectiveness and lifespan of stone molds.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 90th Annual Meeting, Denver, CO (2025)   •
• SAA 2025: Individual Abstracts

Keywords

Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 53391