Page:A record of European armour and arms through seven centuries (Volume 1).djvu/78

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is complete. The lance heads illustrated are all London finds and are now in the London Museum. In greater variety the Saxon lance and spear-head are to be seen in the British Museum. The spear was the freeman's weapon, and as such lawful, but "if a slave be found with a spear it shall be broken on his back."

Fig. 4. Saxon spear and lance heads

(a) Small spear-head, VIIIth to Xth century, split haft socket, found in the Thames opposite the Tower of London (b) Spear-head, Xth to XIth century, split haft socket, found in the Thames at Vauxhall (c) Long spear-head, decorated, Xth to XIth century, split haft socket, found in the Thames at Wandsworth (d) Javelin head, Xth to XIth century, complete haft socket, found in the Thames opposite the Tate Gallery

London Museum In his barrow grave the freeman lies with his spear beside him. We find the spear-head near his foot, the ferrule by his head; he was buried with the "reversed arms" which still are the symbol of warlike grief. The bow was no national weapon of the Anglo-Saxon; the bowmen were on the other side at Hastings; it was not until he had learned to bend the mighty bows of Gwent that the English archer came to his pride of place. Arrow-heads of this period are rarely discovered. An illustration of an Anglo-Saxon bow and arrow in use is given from the Utrecht Psalter, early XIth century (Harleian MS. 603, Brit. Mus.) (Fig. 5), also an illustration of an arrow-head found in the river Thames at Wallingford (Fig. 6), and an example from the Thames at London (Fig. 7). We see in the Bayeux needlework the Anglo-Saxon slings. They also figure in the Cotton MS. Claudius B. 4 (Fig. 8). Knife and dagger seax