Lagobolon

Pan holding a lagobolon in his right hand and resting his left elbow on the rock.

Lagobolon (Ancient Greek: λαγωβόλον or λαγωοβόλον)^[1] was an ancient Greek versatile hunting throwing stick used primarily for hunting hares, as suggested by its very name: λαγώς (lagos), meaning "hare", and βόλος (bolos), meaning "throwing" or "catching", though it was also adapted for use in hunting other animals. Its design was meant for precision and forceful throwing, often to destabilize or kill small animals.^[2][3]

Description and design

The lagobolon was typically a short, curved, wooden weapon designed to be thrown with force or used as a blunt instrument. It could be employed to destabilize or kill prey, particularly small animals like hares. The weapon's aerodynamic shape allowed it to travel in an elliptical trajectory when thrown, striking the target with force. In some cases, it was also used for larger animals, such as deer, where it would serve as a blunt-force weapon for delivering a fatal blow.^[2][3]

The lagobolon was often shaped with a curved end, resembling a shepherd's staff. This design is referenced in texts such as Antiquities of Rome by Dionysius of Halicarnassus, where it is described alongside a similar object, the kalaurops (καλαῡροψ).^[4] Dionysius describes it as a staff curved at one end, noting that some people call it a kalaurops while others refer to it as a lagobolon.^[5][6] The kalaurops is mentioned as early as the time of Homer; in the Iliad, it is described as a herdsman’s crook.^[7] The kalaurops and lagobolon were often used interchangeably in ancient texts, due to their similar shape and function.^[3] There was also the term koruni/koryne (κορύνη) or pedum which described a curved tool, a crook or shepherd’s staff, often used for similar purposes, such as guiding livestock and, in some cases, for hunting.^[8]

The lagobolon's shape varied based on its use. Some were straight with short branches, while others were more curved or knotted. This adaptability allowed hunters to customize the weapon based on the size of the animal they were hunting and the available materials. The lagobolon was predominantly used by foot hunters, but there is evidence that mounted hunters also used it.^[2][3]

Historical references

The lagobolon was mentioned by Theocritus, who described a Sicilian shepherd using the weapon. Xenophon, in his treatise On Hunting, does not explicitly mention the lagobolon by name but refers to it generically as a "club".^[2][3]

Visual representations of the lagobolon can be found in various ancient sources. For example, an Etruscan oenochoe dating to the 6th century BC depicts hunters using bent, boomerang-like sticks to chase hares, aligning with the design of the lagobolon. Additionally, Pharsalian silver and copper coins from the 4th century BC feature images of a horseman wielding a weapon similar to lagobolon and fighting against an enemy, while another coin display a similar horseman wielding the weapon but without the enemy.^[3]

Symbolism

In ancient Greek culture, it was associated with several deities, particularly Artemis (goddess of the hunt), Apollo (patron of herdsmen and shepherds),^[9] Pan,^[10][8][11] Satyrs, Maenads,^[12] Thalia (Muse) (the Muse of Pastoral poetry)^[8] and Daphnis (a legendary shepherd and pastoral figure).^[13] In Theocritus Epigrams, there is a poem that mentions the lagobolon in connection with Pan and Daphnis.^[13]

Dionysius of Halicarnassus mentions that the lagobolon was a symbol of the settlement of the city of Rome. He writes that when a sacred hut of Mars/Ares on the Palatine Hill was destroyed by fire together with the surrounding houses, a curved staff was found miraculously unharmed among the ashes, this staff had been used by Romulus, when he was intending to found the city, to mark out the regions for taking auspices.^[5][6]

Leonidas of Tarentum mentioned that a lagobolon was used as votive offerings to the gods by a Cretan shepherd and a hunter.^[3]

Modern Greece

In modern times, oral traditions indicate that shepherds in the Greek mountains have continued to use a similar type of weapon for hunting hares. This modern tool, known as the "lagoudera" (λαγουδέρα) or "lagousa" (λαγούσα), is a specially shaped wooden stick carried by shepherds. Τhe same term is used in nautical language to describe the lever that controls the rudder of a boat or small sailing vessel, reflecting the similar shape between these modern tools and the ancient lagobolon.^[2]

Gallery with types of Lagobola

• 
  A coin depicting Pan bearing a lagobolon
• 
  A horseman with lagobolon
• 
  A draw depicting a lagobolon next to a man
• 
  A medaillon depicting a lagobolon
• 
  Coing depicting a lagobolon

References

1. "Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott, A Greek-English Lexicon, λα^γώβολ-ον". www.perseus.tufts.edu. Retrieved 21 September 2025.
2. "ΛΑΓΩΒΟΛΟΝ – ΕΝΑ ΙΔΙΟΜΟΡΦΟ ΚΥΝΗΓΕΤΙΚΟ ΟΠΛΟ". 1 December 2015. Retrieved 21 September 2025.
3. Nefëdkin, Aleksandr Konstantinovič; Nefëdkin, Aleksandr Konstantinovič (21 September 2009). "Hunt and hunting weapons in antiquity and the Middle Ages". IAiE PAN, call no. P III 349. Retrieved 21 September 2025 – via dLibra.
4. "Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott, A Greek-English Lexicon, κα^λαῦροψ". www.perseus.tufts.edu. Retrieved 21 September 2025.
5. Dionysius of Halicarnassus, Roman Antiquities, 14.2.2 - English
6. "Dionysius of Halicarnassus, Antiquitates Romanae, Books I-XX, book 14, chapter 2, section 2". www.perseus.tufts.edu. Retrieved 21 September 2025.
7. "Homer, Iliad, Book 2, line 734". www.perseus.tufts.edu. Retrieved 21 September 2025.
8. "A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities (1890), PEDUM". www.perseus.tufts.edu. Retrieved 21 September 2025.
9. The Agricultural History Review, volume xiii, 1965, p. 47
10. "intaglio | British Museum". Retrieved 21 September 2025.
11. Galerie Mythologique, pages. 186-187
12. "cameo; skyphos | British Museum". Retrieved 21 September 2025.
13. "Theocritus, Epigrams, A Pal vi.177". www.perseus.tufts.edu. Retrieved 21 September 2025.

External links

Media related to Lagobola at Wikimedia Commons