A pole weapon with a sharp point, either thrown or thrust at an enemy or prey, one of the earliest weapons created by man and dating back to Palaeolithic times. They were originally a sharpened stick and some were made of stone, shaped and fixed to the shaft by thongs and possibly resins. In the Bronze Age, they were made of that metal and had a tang for riveting the head to the shaft. Later, the tang was replaced by a socket into which the shaft fitted. The Iron Age spears retained this feature and were sometimes decorated with La Tène designs.