Skip to content
TrackPodcasts
historyJun 15, 202341:55pending

The First Spears

The Ancients

About this episode


According to the work of today's guest, Dr Annemieke Milks, humans were using spears approximately 400,000 years ago. Thanks to fragments of wooden spears incredibly well preserved at sites like Clacton-on-Sea in Essex, and Schöningen in Germany, there's now evidence to show our early ancestors weren't just hunter gatherers, but skilled weapons users.


Together, Tristan and Annemieke dissect what the evidence actually shows, the speculation surrounding ancestors millions of years ago also using weapons, and how experimental archaeology holds the key to unlocking the secrets of our ancestors lives.


Discover the past on History Hit with ad-free original podcasts and documentaries released weekly presented by world renowned historians like Dan Snow, Suzannah Lipscomb, Lucy Worsley, Matt Lewis, Tristan Hughes and more.


Get 50% off your first 3 months with code ANCIENTS. Download the app on your smart TV or in the app store or sign up here.


You can take part in our listener survey here.


For more ancient content, subscribe to our Ancient History Thursday newsletter here.


Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Get every episode summarized

Each time The Ancients publishes, we email you a written briefing from the transcript — the topics, who appeared, and any specific claims, with the ad reads skipped.

Email me new episodes

Free for 3 shows. No card needed.

Hosts & guests

No transcript yet

This episode has not been transcribed. Request it and it moves to the front of the queue.

The First Spears

The Ancients

0:00
41:55

More episodes

More from The Ancients

View all episodes →