Plains Indian Weapons: 19th Century Stone War Clubs

Stone war clubs were widely used as a weapon across North America dating back to prehistoric times, but they were predominantly adopted by the Northern and Southern Plains tribes. These were close contact weapons used for bludgeoning an enemy using a swinging action.

The war club head was made of a hard stone, most commonly in a round, oblong or double-pointed shape. The handle was made of a hard wood indigenous to the area and attached to the head with rawhide.  This wrapping was usually laced around the head with a ½” band around the middle and in some cases covered the entire head. The handle was then wrapped with rawhide and stitched closed with sinew.

War clubs were generally 30” long and swung like a golf club. Most of these were simply made, while some had a beaded or horse hair drop at the end. Ceremonial clubs were made in the 20” range or were longer clubs that had been broken.  During the reservation period, many clubs were adorned with drops and fully beaded for ceremonial use.

Cisco's has an extensive collection of Native American war clubs. Click here to view our complete collection!