Arrow poison: Difference between revisions
Content deleted Content added
mNo edit summary |
mNo edit summary |
||
| Line 10: | Line 10: | ||
The use of poisoned arrows in hunting and warfare by [[Native Americans in the United States|Native American]]s has also been documented.<ref>{{cite book |first=David E |last=Jones |title=Poison Arrows: North American Indian Hunting and Warfare |year=2007 |publisher=[[University of Texas Press]] |isbn=9780292714281 |url=http://books.google.com/books?id=m2v8akdyZfwC}}</ref> |
The use of poisoned arrows in hunting and warfare by [[Native Americans in the United States|Native American]]s has also been documented.<ref>{{cite book |first=David E |last=Jones |title=Poison Arrows: North American Indian Hunting and Warfare |year=2007 |publisher=[[University of Texas Press]] |isbn=9780292714281 |url=http://books.google.com/books?id=m2v8akdyZfwC}}</ref> |
||
Over the ages, [[China|Chinese]] warfare has included projectiles poisoned with various nefarious substances |
Over the ages, [[China|Chinese]] warfare has included projectiles poisoned with various nefarious substances.<ref>{{cite book |first=Ralph D |last=Sawyer |title=The Tao of Deception: Unorthodox Warfare in Historic and Modern China |year=2007 |publisher=[[Basic Books]] |isbn=9780465072057}}</ref> |
||
[[Balder|Balder's]] death in the [[Norse mythology|Norse myths]] features poison arrows. |
[[Balder|Balder's]] death in the [[Norse mythology|Norse myths]] features poison arrows. |
||
| Line 25: | Line 25: | ||
*Poisoned arrows are used widely in the jungle areas of [[Assam]], [[Burma]] and [[Malaysia]]. The main plant sources for the poisons are members of the ''[[Antiaris]]'', ''[[Strychnos]]'' and ''Strophanthus'' genera. ''[[Antiaris toxicaria]]'' for example, a tree of the [[mulberry]] and [[breadfruit]] [[Moraceae|family]], is commonly used on [[Java]] and its neighbouring islands. The sap or juice of the seeds is smeared on the arrow head on its own or mixed with other plant extracts.<ref name="VandA">{{cite web|url=http://www.vam.ac.uk/collections/asia/object_stories/arrows/index.html|title=Poisoned arrows|publisher=Victoria and Albert Museum|accessdate=2006-08-10}}</ref> The fast-acting active ingredient (either antiarin, [[strychnine]] or strophanthin) attacks the [[central nervous system]] causing [[paralysis]], [[Non-epileptic seizure|convulsions]] and [[cardiac arrest]].<ref name="VandA" /> |
*Poisoned arrows are used widely in the jungle areas of [[Assam]], [[Burma]] and [[Malaysia]]. The main plant sources for the poisons are members of the ''[[Antiaris]]'', ''[[Strychnos]]'' and ''Strophanthus'' genera. ''[[Antiaris toxicaria]]'' for example, a tree of the [[mulberry]] and [[breadfruit]] [[Moraceae|family]], is commonly used on [[Java]] and its neighbouring islands. The sap or juice of the seeds is smeared on the arrow head on its own or mixed with other plant extracts.<ref name="VandA">{{cite web|url=http://www.vam.ac.uk/collections/asia/object_stories/arrows/index.html|title=Poisoned arrows|publisher=Victoria and Albert Museum|accessdate=2006-08-10}}</ref> The fast-acting active ingredient (either antiarin, [[strychnine]] or strophanthin) attacks the [[central nervous system]] causing [[paralysis]], [[Non-epileptic seizure|convulsions]] and [[cardiac arrest]].<ref name="VandA" /> |
||
*Several species of ''[[Aconitum]]'' or "aconite" have been used as arrow poisons. The [[Minaro]] in [[Ladakh]] use ''A. napellus'' on their arrows to hunt [[Siberian Ibex]]; they were in use recently near lake [[Issyk Kul]] in [[Kyrgyzstan]].<ref>{{cite book |first=George |last=St. George |title=Soviet Deserts and Mountains |location=[[Amsterdam]] |publisher=[[Time–Life|Time-Life International]] |year=1974}}</ref> The [[Ainu people|Ainu]]s in [[Japan]] used a species of ''[[Aconitum]]'' to hunt [[Brown Bear]].<ref>Peissel, Michel. 1984. ''The Ants’ Gold. The Discovery of the Greek El Dorado in the Himalayas''. London, Harvill Press, pp. 99-100.</ref>, and by the [[Butia]]s and [[Lepcha]]s in [[Sikkim]] and [[Assam]].<ref>{{cite book |first=Joseph Dalton |last=Hooker |authorlink=Joseph Dalton Hooker |title=Himalayan Journals or Notes of a Naturalist |year=1854 |publisher=[[John Murray (publisher)|John Murray]] |location=London |accessdate=2006-09-17 |url=http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/6478 |page=168}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |first=J. H. |last=Hutton |title=The occurrence of the Blow-Gun in Assam |journal=[[Man (journal)|Man]] |publisher=[[Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland]] |volume=24 |month=July |year=1924 |page=106}}</ref> The Chinese used ''Aconitum'' poisons both for hunting<ref name="Shiou-chuan">{{cite book |first=Yingxing |last=Song |coauthors=Sun, Shiou-chuan; Sun, E-tu Zen |title=Chinese Technology in the Seventeenth Century: T'ien-kung K'ai-wu |year=1996 |location=[[Mineola, New York]] |publisher= [[Dover Publications]] |isbn=9780486295930 |url=http://books.google.com/books?id=fM2Bh6WifHQC&client=firefox-a |page=267}}</ref> and warfare.<ref>Chavannes, Édouard. “Trois Généraux Chinois de la dynastie des Han Orientaux. Pan Tch’ao (32-102 p.C.); – son fils Pan Yong; – Leang K’in (112 p.C.). Chapitre LXXVII du Heou Han chou.”. 1906. ''T’oung pao'' 7, pp. 226-227.</ref> |
*Several species of ''[[Aconitum]]'' or "aconite" have been used as arrow poisons. The [[Minaro]] in [[Ladakh]] use ''A. napellus'' on their arrows to hunt [[Siberian Ibex]]; they were in use recently near lake [[Issyk Kul]] in [[Kyrgyzstan]].<ref>{{cite book |first=George |last=St. George |title=Soviet Deserts and Mountains |location=[[Amsterdam]] |publisher=[[Time–Life|Time-Life International]] |year=1974}}</ref> The [[Ainu people|Ainu]]s in [[Japan]] used a species of ''[[Aconitum]]'' to hunt [[Brown Bear]].<ref>Peissel, Michel. 1984. ''The Ants’ Gold. The Discovery of the Greek El Dorado in the Himalayas''. London, Harvill Press, pp. 99-100.</ref>, and by the [[Butia]]s and [[Lepcha]]s in [[Sikkim]] and [[Assam]].<ref>{{cite book |first=Joseph Dalton |last=Hooker |authorlink=Joseph Dalton Hooker |title=Himalayan Journals or Notes of a Naturalist |year=1854 |publisher=[[John Murray (publisher)|John Murray]] |location=[[London]] |accessdate=2006-09-17 |url=http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/6478 |page=168}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |first=J. H. |last=Hutton |title=The occurrence of the Blow-Gun in Assam |journal=[[Man (journal)|Man]] |publisher=[[Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland]] |volume=24 |month=July |year=1924 |page=106}}</ref> The Chinese used ''Aconitum'' poisons both for hunting<ref name="Shiou-chuan">{{cite book |first=Yingxing |last=Song |coauthors=Sun, Shiou-chuan; Sun, E-tu Zen |title=Chinese Technology in the Seventeenth Century: T'ien-kung K'ai-wu |year=1996 |location=[[Mineola, New York]] |publisher= [[Dover Publications]] |isbn=9780486295930 |url=http://books.google.com/books?id=fM2Bh6WifHQC&client=firefox-a |page=267}}</ref> and warfare.<ref>Chavannes, Édouard. “Trois Généraux Chinois de la dynastie des Han Orientaux. Pan Tch’ao (32-102 p.C.); – son fils Pan Yong; – Leang K’in (112 p.C.). Chapitre LXXVII du Heou Han chou.”. 1906. ''T’oung pao'' 7, pp. 226-227.</ref> |
||
===Animal-based poisons=== |
===Animal-based poisons=== |
||
Revision as of 05:14, 24 January 2009
Arrow poisons are used to poison arrow heads or darts for the purposes of hunting. They have been used by hunter-gatherer peoples worldwide and are still in use in areas of South America, Africa and Asia.
Notable examples are the poisons secreted from the skin of the poison dart frog and curare (or 'ampi'), a general term for a range of plant-derived arrow poisons used by the indigenous peoples of South America.[1]
Poisoned arrows have featured in mythology, notably the Greek story of Heracles slaying the centaur Nessus using arrows poisoned with the blood of the Lernaean Hydra. The Greek hero Odysseus poisons his arrows with hellebore in Homer's Odyssey. Poisoned arrows also figure in Homer's epic about the Trojan War, the Iliad, in which both Achaeans and Trojans used toxic arrows and spears.[2]
Poison arrows were used by real peoples in the ancient world, including the Gauls, ancient Romans, and the nomadic Scythians and Soanes. Ancient Greek and Roman historians describe recipes for poisoning projectiles and historical battles in which poison arrows were used. Alexander the Great encountered poisoned projectiles during his conquest of India (probably dipped in the venom of Russell's viper) and the army of the Roman general Lucullus suffered grievous poison wounds from arrows shot by nomads during the Third Mithridatic War (1st century BC).[2]
The use of poisoned arrows in hunting and warfare by Native Americans has also been documented.[3]
Over the ages, Chinese warfare has included projectiles poisoned with various nefarious substances.[4]
Balder's death in the Norse myths features poison arrows.
Varieties
Arrow poisons around the world are created from many sources:
Plant based poisons
- Curare is a generic term for arrow poisons that contain tubocurarine. Most frequently it is derived from the bark of Strychnos toxifera, S. guianensis (family Loganiaceae), Chondrodendron tomentosum or Sciadotenia toxifera (family Menispermaceae). Curare is a competitive antagonist that blocks nicotinic acetylcholine receptors on the post synaptic membrane of the neuromuscular junction. It is a muscle relaxant that causes death by paralyzing the respiratory system, resulting in asphyxiation.
- In Africa arrow poisons are made from plants that contain cardiac glycosides, such as Acokanthera (possessing ouabain), oleander (Nerium oleander), milkweeds (Asclepias), or Strophanthus, all of which are in the Apocynaceae family.[1] Inee or onaye is a poison made from Strophanthus hispidus, which contains the cardiac glycoside strophanthin. It is used in sub-Saharan West Africa, particularly in the areas of Togo and Cameroon.[5]
- Poisoned arrows are used widely in the jungle areas of Assam, Burma and Malaysia. The main plant sources for the poisons are members of the Antiaris, Strychnos and Strophanthus genera. Antiaris toxicaria for example, a tree of the mulberry and breadfruit family, is commonly used on Java and its neighbouring islands. The sap or juice of the seeds is smeared on the arrow head on its own or mixed with other plant extracts.[6] The fast-acting active ingredient (either antiarin, strychnine or strophanthin) attacks the central nervous system causing paralysis, convulsions and cardiac arrest.[6]
- Several species of Aconitum or "aconite" have been used as arrow poisons. The Minaro in Ladakh use A. napellus on their arrows to hunt Siberian Ibex; they were in use recently near lake Issyk Kul in Kyrgyzstan.[7] The Ainus in Japan used a species of Aconitum to hunt Brown Bear.[8], and by the Butias and Lepchas in Sikkim and Assam.[9][10] The Chinese used Aconitum poisons both for hunting[11] and warfare.[12]
Animal-based poisons
- In South America, tribes such as the Noanamá Chocó and Emberá Chocó of western Colombia dip the tips of their blowgun darts in the poison found on the skin of three species of Phyllobates, a genus of poison dart frog. In northern Chocó Department, Phyllobates aurotaenia is used, while P. bicolor is used in Risaralda Department and southern Chocó. In Cauca Department, only P. terribilis is used for dart making. The poison is generally collected by roasting the frogs over a fire, but the batrachotoxins in P. terribilis are powerful enough that it is sufficient to dip the dart in the back of the frog without killing it.
- In the northern Kalahari Desert, the most commonly used arrow poison is derived from the larva and pupae of beetles of the genus Diamphidia. It is applied to the arrow either by squeezing the contents of the larva directly onto the arrow head, mixing it with plant sap to act as an adhesive, or by mixing a powder made from the dried larva with plant juices and applying that to the arrow tip. The toxin is slow attacking and the injured animal can travel 40-70 miles (64-112 km) before succumbing to the effects.[13]
Preparation
The following 17th century account describes how arrow poisons were prepared in China:
- "In making poison arrows for shooting wild beasts, the tubers of wild aconitum are boiled in water. The resulting liquid, being highly viscous and poisonous, is smeared on the sharp edges of arrowheads. These treated arrowheads are effective in the quick killing of both human beings and animals, even though the victim may shed only a trace of blood."[11]
See also
- Blowgun
- Blowdart
- Fukiya Japanese blowgun
- Loire style Blowgun (French page)
- Ricin
Notes
- ^ a b "Curare". Retrieved 2006-08-09.
- ^ a b Mayor, Adrienne (2009). Greek Fire, Poison Arrows and Scorpion Bombs: Biological and Chemical Warfare in the Ancient World (Revised ed.). The Overlook Press. ISBN 9781590201770.
- ^ Jones, David E (2007). Poison Arrows: North American Indian Hunting and Warfare. University of Texas Press. ISBN 9780292714281.
- ^ Sawyer, Ralph D (2007). The Tao of Deception: Unorthodox Warfare in Historic and Modern China. Basic Books. ISBN 9780465072057.
- ^ "Definition of inee". Webster's International Dictionary. 1913. Retrieved 2006-08-09.
- ^ a b "Poisoned arrows". Victoria and Albert Museum. Retrieved 2006-08-10.
- ^ St. George, George (1974). Soviet Deserts and Mountains. Amsterdam: Time-Life International.
- ^ Peissel, Michel. 1984. The Ants’ Gold. The Discovery of the Greek El Dorado in the Himalayas. London, Harvill Press, pp. 99-100.
- ^ Hooker, Joseph Dalton (1854). Himalayan Journals or Notes of a Naturalist. London: John Murray. p. 168. Retrieved 2006-09-17.
- ^ Hutton, J. H. (1924). "The occurrence of the Blow-Gun in Assam". Man. 24. Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland: 106.
{{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter|month=ignored (help) - ^ a b Song, Yingxing (1996). Chinese Technology in the Seventeenth Century: T'ien-kung K'ai-wu. Mineola, New York: Dover Publications. p. 267. ISBN 9780486295930.
{{cite book}}: Unknown parameter|coauthors=ignored (|author=suggested) (help) - ^ Chavannes, Édouard. “Trois Généraux Chinois de la dynastie des Han Orientaux. Pan Tch’ao (32-102 p.C.); – son fils Pan Yong; – Leang K’in (112 p.C.). Chapitre LXXVII du Heou Han chou.”. 1906. T’oung pao 7, pp. 226-227.
- ^ "How San hunters use beetles to poison their arrows". Iziko Museums of Cape Town. Retrieved 2006-08-09.