Abstract
The use of archery to hunt appears relatively late in human history. It is poorly understood but the application of poisons to arrows to increase lethality must have occurred shortly after developing bow hunting methods; these early multi-stage transitions represent cognitive shifts in human evolution. This paper is a synthesis of widely-scattered literature in anthropology, entomology, and chemistry, dealing with San (“Bushmen”) arrow poisons. The term San (or Khoisan) covers many indigenous groups using so-called ‘click languages’ in southern Africa. Beetles are used for arrow poison by at least eight San groups and one non-San group. Fieldwork and interviews with Ju|’hoan and Hai||om hunters in Namibia revealed major differences in the nature and preparation of arrow poisons, bow and arrow construction, and poison antidote. Ju|’hoan hunters use leaf-beetle larvae of Diamphidia Gerstaecker and Polyclada Chevrolat (Chrysomelidae: Galerucinae: Alticini) collected from soil around the host plants Commiphora africana (A. Rich.) Engl. and Commiphora angolensis Engl. (Burseracaeae). In the Nyae Nyae area of Namibia, Ju|’hoan hunters use larvae of Diamphidia nigroornata Ståhl. Larvae and adults live above-ground on the plants and eat leaves, but the San collect the underground cocoons to extract the mature larvae. Larval hemolymph is mixed with saliva and applied to arrows. Hai||om hunters boil the milky plant sap of Adenium bohemianum Schinz (Apocynaceae) to reduce it to a thick paste that is applied to their arrows. The socio-cultural, historical, and ecological contexts of the various San groups may determine differences in the sources and preparation of poisons, bow and arrow technology, hunting behaviors, poison potency, and perhaps antidotes.
Highlights
Archery appears relatively late in human history and is thought to represent a cognitive shift in human behavior, social organization, and tool-making in the Middle and Late Stone Age (Sisk and Shea 2009; Lombard and Phillipson 2010; Wadley 2011, 2013)
This paper concerns the arrow poisons used by the Southern African San
Our cross-disciplinary synthesis of historial literature, reports of anthropologists, and our own collective fieldwork in southern Africa indicates that beetle arrow poison is used by seven San groups—the G|ui, G||ana, G||olo, Naro, Kua, and Tsila in Botswana, and the Hai||om in Namibia
Summary
Archery appears relatively late in human history and is thought to represent a cognitive shift in human behavior, social organization, and tool-making in the Middle and Late Stone Age (Sisk and Shea 2009; Lombard and Phillipson 2010; Wadley 2011, 2013). Though inadequately studied and poorly understood, the use of poisons on arrows to increase lethality must have occurred shortly after early humans developed bow hunting methods. This paper concerns the arrow poisons used by the Southern African San. The term San ( known as Khoisan, Basarwa, or “Bushmen”) covers many indigenous groups using so-called ‘click languages’ in southern Africa (Barnard 1992; Smith et al 2000; Hitchcock et al 2006; Fig. 1; see our Materials and methods below for further notes on San nations). Some of the earliest reported arrowheads are carved bone projectile points that date to ~24,000 years ago, excavated from Border Cave, South Africa (d’Errico et al 2012; Mitchell 2012). Theophrastus documented use of poison arrows in Africa in the 4th century (Sharples, Huby, and Fortenbaugh 1995)
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