“Won by the Spear”: the importance of the Dory to the Ancient Greek warrior

Abstract

The spear, or dory, was the major weapon of the ancient Greeks. The ancient Greek warrior, especially the hoplite, was known for his prowess in using the dory as a thrusting weapon in hand-to-hand combat and as part of the formidable Greek phalanx, but the dory, too, could be used as a missile weapon, when necessary. Other specialized throwing-spears were commonplace among the ancient Greeks’ arsenal of weapons. The Greeks incorporated a throwing loop, called an ankyle, that was used to maximize the distance that a spear could be thrown, enhancing the ancient Greeks’ military dominance on the battlefield. The dory, and its athletic kin, the javelin, or akon or akonition, were fixtures in ancient Greece, and often Greek soldiers would carry two spears into battle for an edge over their adversaries. The following is a description of the dory, its construction and development, and how modern-day experiments indicate how impressive the ankyle was at helping the ancient Greeks to achieve victory that was “won by the spear”.