The club was the first weapon of mankind. Also known as cudgel or bludgeon, the club was first wielded by primitive men all over the world during prehistorical times. It was essentially a staff, made of wood, or from a femur, and was used for beating. With one downward swinging movement, a man could stun a medium-size beast or bash his foe’s head.

The handaxe was a bifacial Paleolithic core weapon and was used for hacking and chopping. In western Europe, the handaxe was mainly made of flint, which flaked easily, yielding a razor-sharp edge. But other material was also used, such as quartzites and other coarse rocks. Slowly developed and improved over the milleniums, the handaxe remained the chief implement of Stone Age hunters as it took on a number of sizes and shapes.

The spear is a pole weapon used for hunting and war, consisting of a shaft, usually of wood, with a sharpened head. The head may be simply the sharpened end of the shaft itself, as is the case with bamboo spears, or it may be of another material fastened to the shaft, such as obsidian or bronze. The most common design is of a metal spearhead, shaped like a triangle or a leaf. The Neantherthal was the first man to use this weapon, specially when he hunted mammoths.