harpoon

A harpoon is a long spear-like projectile used in fishing, whaling, sealing, and other hunting activities to shoot, kill, and capture large fish or marine mammals such as seals, sea cows and whales. It accomplishes its task by impaling the target animal and securing it with barb or toggling claws, allowing the fishermen or hunters to use an attached rope or chain to pull and retrieve the animal. A harpoon can also be used as a ranged weapon against other watercraft in naval warfare. Certain harpoons are made with different builds to perform better with the type of target being aimed at. For example, the Inuit have short, fixed-foreshaft harpoons for hunting at breathing holes, while loose-shafted ones are made for throwing and remaining attached to the game. History In the 1990s, harpoon points, known as the Semliki harpoons or the Katanda harpoons, were found in the Katanda region in Zaire (called the Democratic Republic of the Congo today). As the earliest known harpoons, these weapons were made and used 90,000 years ago, most likely to spear catfishes. Later, in Japan, spearfishing with poles (harpoons) was widespread in palaeolithic times, especially during the Solutrean and Magdalenian periods. Cosquer Cave in Southern France contains cave art over 16,000 years old, including drawings of seals which appear to have been harpooned.