1. Clasping his shield he treads under foot,

2. No second blow needed to kill

3. None can escape his arrow,

4. None turn aside his bow.

5. From the story of Sinuhe

Weapons of combat and self-defense developed side by side with the tools of the farmer and craftsman. As a result, at times some examples of tools and weapons are indistinguishable from each other. It is often difficult to decide whether a hatchet was meant as a carpentry tool or as a hand-to-hand weapon, just as a spear or javelin could equally be used in hunting or in battle. Even so, the weapons of the Egyptian military were basically simple and practical in design. From the prehistoric and Predynastic periods the only evidence that has been preserved of what may be classified as weapons are stone axes and projectile points. The blades of axes are much like those found in every prehistoric culture, simple, near ovoid, and originally handheld but later meant to be bound to a wooden handle with leather thongs or cord. Some of the early points for spears and arrows eventually exhibit a higher technology and have convex curves in the butt end, to allow a better fit and more secure attachment to a wooden or reed shaft.

Egyptian weapons can be divided into two general classes on the basis of how they were used and what the distance was between combatants. The first class includes the direct-contact hand-to-hand weapons for clubbing, stabbing, and cutting. The second is made up of those that function at a distance, including the spear or javelin, and others that aid in the launch of a projectile, such as the sling for pellets and bow for arrows. Clubbing and stabbing weapons were probably among the first to be developed, because they were simple and immediate. These were gradually supplemented but not replaced by the development of more advanced armament such as the sling and the bow (Fig. 92).