chucalissa indian village: [atlatl]

chucalissa indian village: 04 [atlatl], a photo by Argon[one] on Flickr.

Even on this cold day, MAGS members enjoyed visiting the grounds of Chucalissa, learning about the history of the plaza, and doing a little bit of spear throwing, aided by the use of an atlatl. The atlatl consists of a shaft with a spur at the end that supports and propels the butt of a six-foot-long spear. The atlatl is held in one hand, gripped near the end farthest from the spur. The spear is thrown by the action of the upper arm and wrist, using the atlatl as a low-mass, fast-moving extension of the throwing arm.