Celtic Spearhead, 3rd Century BC
One of the most distinctive elements of the Celtic panoply, certainly if we’re talking about the period from the 3rd century BC onward, is the spear.
But reconstructing a Celtic spear is far from straightforward. It’s important to understand some of its important characteristics and follow its evolution to achieve the most historically accurate result and avoid creating something approximate.
What are the characteristics required for a historically accurate reconstruction of the Gallic spear, particularly in the 3rd century BC?
If you’d like to learn more about how to reconstruct a Gallic warrior from the 3rd century BC, watch our video.
Between the 4th and 3rd centuries BC, the Celtic lankia (spear) was widespread throughout the Gallic military landscape. In the 4th century, it was the prerogative of the warrior elite, as a symbol of social status (imitating Mediterranean panoplies). By the 3rd century BC, however, it was a weapon common at all social levels.
In Gallic tombs of the period, it was sometimes even the only offensive weapon present.
In addition to being more widespread than before (a sign of the widespread introduction of hoplite tactics and formations of even non-professional warriors), the overall dimensions of the lankia also increased significantly, particularly the shaft and tip.
While in the 4th century, imitating the preceding Greek and Etruscan dory, Gallic spears were around 250 cm long, in the 3rd century this length was exceeded, in some cases perhaps even exceeding 300 cm.
This lengthening of the shaft was also accompanied by an enlargement of the tip.
The Celtic spearhead of the 3rd century BC varied in length from 45 to 70 cm, with a robust central rib. This therefore surpassed the already considerable sized spearheads of the 4th century BC. BC, typically measuring between 40 and 50 cm in length.
In the western Celtic territories, such as Italy and Gaul, the spearhead typically has a rather slender profile, sometimes with the base of the blade noticeably wider than the rest—a feature that gives many Celtic spearheads a distinctive “pear-shaped” profile.
