# Name that weapon - Last of the Mohicans **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 17, 2009, 5:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-that-weapon-last-of-the-mohicans/496724 "2009-05-17T05:04:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![TGWATY](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b5e925/32.png) [@TGWATY](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TGWATY)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2009, 5:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-that-weapon-last-of-the-mohicans/496724/1 "2009-05-17T05:04:44Z")
What is the axe-like thing carried by Chingachkook by which he dispatched Magua? In the 1992 film. ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2009, 5:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-that-weapon-last-of-the-mohicans/496724/2 "2009-05-17T05:11:32Z")
I haven’t seen the movie, but a Native American using an axe as a weapon says [Tomahawk](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tomahawk_(axe)) to me. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2009, 5:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-that-weapon-last-of-the-mohicans/496724/3 "2009-05-17T05:16:11Z")
It was more of a spiked club, actualy. Not a tomahawk. ---
**Author:** ![Ranchoth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranchoth/32/1066_2.png) [@Ranchoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranchoth)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2009, 5:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-that-weapon-last-of-the-mohicans/496724/4 "2009-05-17T05:21:19Z")
It’s a “[gunstock club](http://www.britishmuseum.org/explore/highlights/highlight_objects/aoa/w/war_club.aspx)”—a kind of Native American weapon originally derived from broken/unfinished longarm stocks, and later manufactured as purpose-built clubs retaining the gun stock shape. ---
**Author:** ![Gukumatz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/74df32/32.png) [@Gukumatz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gukumatz)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2009, 5:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-that-weapon-last-of-the-mohicans/496724/5 "2009-05-17T05:28:31Z")
It’s a re-fashioned musket stock with a serrated knife blade attached or driven through it. Usually just known as a gun-stock war club. The knife blades could be on the top, end or underside of the stock. The forestock was wrapped in rawhide to prevent slipping. Sometimes they’d also wrap the business end to keep it from splintering. The trigger housing would be the grip and it’d have decent reach. They’d refit rifles or muskets like this once the barrel became bent or the firing mechanism gave out, and they couldn’t get spare parts. Basically looked something like [this](http://www.mohicanpress.com/images/warclub2.jpg), right? It’s been a while, so I’m going off memory. ETA: **Rancloth** beat me to it. ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2009, 5:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-that-weapon-last-of-the-mohicans/496724/6 "2009-05-17T05:30:23Z")
Now, those things are pretty awesome looking. ---
**Author:** ![SuntanTigerTamer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e5b9ba/32.png) [@SuntanTigerTamer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SuntanTigerTamer)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2009, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-that-weapon-last-of-the-mohicans/496724/7 "2009-05-17T17:33:07Z")
Thank you for asking this question. I’ve often wondered about it myself. ---
**Author:** ![TGWATY](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b5e925/32.png) [@TGWATY](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TGWATY)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2009, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-that-weapon-last-of-the-mohicans/496724/8 "2009-05-18T15:06:18Z")
> [@Gukumatz](#): > > Basically looked something like [this](http://www.mohicanpress.com/images/warclub2.jpg), right? It’s been a while, so I’m going off memory. That’s it! Thanks, Gukumatz and Rancloth. I thought it looked like a stock, which is what made it confusing to me. That and that he wielded it like it had an edge but it looked like it was wood. ---
**Author:** ![Push\_You\_Down](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/push_you_down/32/9095_2.png) [@Push\_You\_Down](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Push_You_Down)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2009, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-that-weapon-last-of-the-mohicans/496724/9 "2009-05-18T16:20:49Z")
oh I’ve always wondered about it too. The blade wasn’t as pronounced as in the picture. ---
**Author:** ![WinyelaGopa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/d6d6ee/32.png) [@WinyelaGopa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WinyelaGopa)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2015, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-that-weapon-last-of-the-mohicans/496724/10 "2015-05-11T00:04:31Z")
it wasn’t really a battle axe. It was a made up replica of an item Michael Mann saw in a museum. The original was small and something a holy man might carry. I was told this by Russell Means.