7. Between 1539 and 1200 BCE, what changes in weaponry occurred?

Return to History 8 Near East Questions

Between 1539 and 1200 BCE, otherwise known as the Middle Bronze Age, was a time that saw many advances in weaponry and technology. Among the new weapons created in that age were the duckbill axe, a narrow, chisel-shaped axe, and a leaf-shaped dagger which had a wooden handle and a stone pommel. At this time, chariots were used for battle purposes. Despite the incredible defenses for the time, the turmoil following the Egyptian expulsion of the Hyksos caused many of the cities in Canaan to be destroyed, leading to the collapse of the Middle Bronze Age social system within Canaan.

A Middle Bronze Age duckbill axe found in Israel. Image from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archaeometallurgy_of_the_Southern_Levant.

To learn more about the Middle Bronze Age weaponry, please visit http://www.bu.edu/anep/MB.html.

Sources

"The Levant: Canaan, Israel, Phoenicia." Origins. Comp. Rosie Beniretto. Ed. Ganesa Collins. Houston, Texas: St. John's School, 2015-2016. 111. Print.

- Lily McCullough