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Meadowcroft to host 22nd annual atlatl competition

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Meadowcroft Rockshelter and Historic Village outside Avella will host the 22nd Annual Meadowcroft Atlatl Competition from noon to 5 p.m. June 15.

Prehistoric hunters used a spear-thrower called the atlatl, a precursor to the bow and arrow, to hunt for food. The atlatl was carved from wood, antler or bone, and used to increase a spear’s force and velocity during the hunt for deer, elk and other large animals.

Visitors of all ages can learn proper atlatl technique from Meadowcroft staff and try out the prehistoric spear-thrower for themselves, then compete in divisions for men, women and youth.

Presented annually in partnership with the World Atlatl Association, the Meadowcroft Atlatl Competition will feature some of the world’s top atlatl competitors.

Throughout the day, visitors can also step inside a wigwam in Meadowcroft’s 16th-century Monongahela Indian Village, and watch a blacksmith forge red-hot iron in the 19th-century Meadowcroft Village.

Also included with regular admission are tours of the Meadowcroft Rockshelter, a National Historic Landmark and the oldest site of human habitation in North America.

Meadowcroft is part of the Smithsonian-affiliated Senator John Heinz History Center museum system. For additional information, go online to www.heinzhistorycenter.org/meadowcroft or call 724-587-3412.

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