World's oldest boomerang doesn't actually come back

BBC News ^ | June 25, 2025 | Helen Briggs

[SunkenCiv]

The world's oldest boomerang is older than previously thought, casting new light on the ingenuity of humans living at the time.

The tool, which was found in a cave in Poland in 1985, is now thought to be 40,000 years old.

Archaeologists say it was fashioned from a mammoth's tusk with an astonishing level of skill.

Researchers worked out from its shape that it would have flown when thrown, but would not have come back to the thrower.

It was probably used in hunting, though it might have had cultural or artistic value, perhaps being used in some kind of ritual.

...new, more reliable radiocarbon dating of human and animal bones found at the site puts the age at between 39,000 and 42,000 years old.

The boomerang is exceptionally well preserved, with score marks suggesting it had been polished and carved for use by a right-handed individual.

Boomerangs are generally associated with Aboriginal culture in Australia.

However, rare finds in the historical record outside Australia suggest they were used across different continents.

The oldest known boomerang from Australia dates to about 10,500 years ago, made from wood. But the oldest images of boomerangs in Australia are rock art paintings 20,000 years old, according to National Museum Australia.

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[Woodman]

Close. Throwing Sticks (non-returning boomerangs) are for hunting small to large game. They can be accurately thrown in a straight line. The spinning of the device ensures that the tips are moving faster than the forward motion and enhance the killing power.

Australian returning boomerangs are designed and used for hunting birds. When a flock of birds are on the ground the hunter can throw the boomerang in the direction of the flock, and as the rise increase their chances of hitting one or more birds.

the objective of a returning boomerang is not getting it back, or accuracy. Rather the objective is speed and coverage of an area.

As a side with returners, smaller equals faster and a shorter loop, bigger slower and a larger loop. The loops size in the Z axis also is affected by size. The best returners (IMHO) are smaller than 16” tip to tip and asymmetrical on the arms.