Ever since Cain killed Abel, man has been quite interested in developing various weapons of offense and defense. History tells us that our first weapons were probably wooden clubs or sharp-edged pieces of stone. But eventually man learned it was much easier to dispatch his fellows if he had a means of puncturing the torso or other vital areas of the body-hence the first dagger or, if you will, combat knife came into existence.

The earliest daggers were no doubt quite crude, being no more than short pieces of hardwood or perhaps bamboo that, having been sharpened to an acute point, were then toasted over an open fire to harden the tip which would minimize blunting.

This discovery of flint proved to be the next step up in the evolution of the dagger or combat knife because it could easily be broken into razor-sharp shards that could be further refined through careful chipping until the desired shape was obtained. It seems that for the most part this shape resembled a broad, sharp leaf with a strong central section that was attached to a short wooden handle by way of hide lashings. However, flint had one basic flaw as a dagger blade, and that was its propensity to chip or shatter when struck by a smart blow.

With the mastery of copper and then bronze, man was able to fashion a stronger dagger blade. Its shape didn't really change that much because its mission remained pretty much the same; namely taking the life of one's foes by the introduction of a puncture wound, since even bronze left much to be desired when it came to employing the edge. However, man, always striving for the advantage, became dissatisfied with the limitations of his bronze daggers and swords, which were having an increasingly hard time coping with the advances in body armor, helmets and shields. What the ancient warrior was really looking for was a metal blade that could be easily worked, yet be hardened enough to take and hold a sharp edge without failing during the rigors of battle.

Iron seemed to be the answer, and its earliest masters, the Hittites of Asia Minor, soon put the advantages of a truly functional edge and point to good use by carving out an extensive empire. With the decline of the Hittites in 1280 B.C., iron technology soon migrated across the Near East, reaching Europe about 1200 B.C. and England quite a bit later at about 500 B.C. With the advent of iron and then steel, the role of the daggers as a primary puncturing-type weapon faded to a backup role, as most soldiers adopted the longer sword which had both a deadly point and an efficient cutting edge. This means of offensive action changed weapon history and design dramatically and sparked a long controversy that remains to this day-namely, which is superior, the point or the edge?

Since a puncture wound remains the most likely way to inflict a deadly or mortal wound, we will explore some of the more common knife and dagger points that have survived down through the years, paying particular attention to their advantages and limitations in combat.

Since the double-edged dagger is one of the oldest point styles known to man, I think it's appropriate to begin with it.

One of the major advantages a straight-bladed, double-edged dagger has to offer the user is a thin, fine point capable of piercing a flesh target with the slightest effort. A solid blow with a well-made dagger will instantly sheath the blade to the hilt, even if the target is shielded by modern soft body armor. Another advantage of the traditional dagger point is that its point is "in line" for greater accuracy in delivering a thrust to even small, hard-to-hit vital areas.

On the other hand, the dagger point has some serious drawbacks that you should be aware of. First, its fine narrow tip is easily bent, broken or blunted on just about any hard object. For instance, on the modern battlefield, a sudden evasive movement by a targeted enemy could cause the dagger point to miss its intended target and instead impact on all kinds of hard objects attached to the battle harness like loaded magazines, buckles, grenades, entrenching tools, etc. The result would, without a doubt, blunt even the best point, thereby severely limiting its ease and depth of penetration even if there was the time or opportunity for another thrust.

Second, to be truly effective, a dagger point must actually pierce or transfix a vital organ, as it is not too effective in severing deeply-placed arteries, whose elastic walls tend to slip off the narrow, fine point without being cut.

Third, most dagger points have little or no belly or curve to them, making them highly unsuitable for delivering a cutting or slashing attack. Some so-called experts believe the dagger's shortcomings in this area are over come due to its potential for long-range fencing-style thrusts and lunges, but a closer examination reveals this to be utter folly, as the extended arm is too vulnerable to stop hits upon initiation and counter cuts upon recovery. Instead, the dagger point is best utilized for medium and close-range thrusting attacks, especially on those rare occasions when stealth or darkness can be used with an unaware target and effect a mortal thrust

Early man was perhaps the first to utilize the concept of the stiletto. A sharp, fine point with no edges, carved from a tree branch, was capable of delivering a deep puncture wound. However, during the late 16th century the idea was revived and updated with the creation of the military and civilian stiletto. This weapon, like that of old, featured a very sharp point with a new twist, a three or four-sided blade that created an extra-nasty puncture wound that was slow to heal and hard to close surgically. The blade was generally fairly long with a smallish grip and short quillions that wouldn't tangle in the clothing when drawn in haste.

The civilian version could be quite ornate and was often embellished with costly engraving, plating or gilding. It was so effective that it soon became the knife of choice among assassins, who added glass blades and poison to increase its lethality.

Today the stiletto point rivals that of the dagger in many areas. For example, it too features a sharp, fine point that will easily pierce flesh, soft Kevlar body armor and heavy clothing, with the added bonus of greater resistance to breaking or blunting due to its three or four-sided blade and lack of sharp edges. Unfortunately, it shares the dagger point's shortcomings as well. Since it lacks any edge whatsoever, it is totally useless for cutting or slashing and normally creates a small wound channel that is totally dependent on piercing or transfixing a vital organ to be effective. So down through the ages the stiletto's long suit appears to have remained unchanged, as it is still an ideal point style when a surprise or covert attack is anticipated and the opportunity is there to deliver a fatal blow.

Like its namesake, the spear-point combat or fighting knife is without doubt a versatile and effective arm that has appealed to close-quarter combatants for centuries. In the United States it has proven particularly popular, coming to greatest prominence with the advent of the Bowie knife in the 1830's and the Ames Riflemen's Knife in the late 1840's.

Even today, the spear point remains a highly-thought-of point style suitable for a host of uses and is seen on everything from the smallest pocket knife up to massive survival knives.

The first thing to recommend the spear point is the versatility of its broad, fat, single edged point. This point while centered in the middle of the blade, normally offers plenty of belly or curve on its sharpened side for cutting and slashing, with some variations adding a swaged false edge on the top-side for easier penetration.

The second benefit the spear point offers the fighting man is that the insertion of its point guarantees a thick, wide wound channel that is not wholly dependent on striking a vital organ to be effective. Major arteries have a harder time escaping its point and are often severed, adding greatly to its lethality. The third benefit gained in combat by its use involves distance. Since the spear point is reasonably effective for slashing at long distance, an attack can be mounted against an antagonist without undue exposure of the arm to stop or counter hits.

Despite its many advantages, the spear point does have a few strikes against it. The first strike is that while it is not nearly as fragile as a dagger or some stilettos, it can be broken or blunted by hard contact with metal or bone. The second strike is, it takes considerably more effort to effect the full insertion of the spear point in flesh targets (not to mention those protected by soft body armor) due to the nature of its wide point meeting a good deal more resistance than that of a dagger. The third and final strike against the spear point is that the largest and most effective models can be quite heavy, weighing a pound or more.

If, however, the man or woman carrying the spear point has the physical strength to cope with its added weight, it seems that its advantages more than compensate for its drawbacks, making it an excellent compromise between the dagger/stiletto and the reinforced point styles discussed elsewhere.

Since no one likes to get stuck with any kind of knife, man has made various attempts to clothe himself in all kinds of garments and armor in the hope of turning aside a lethal point. Mail armor composed of interlocking iron or steel rings tailored in vests or coats was developed as highly mobile, lightweight armor that could stop most sword cuts and thrusts, as well as blows from dirks and there was always a weapon that could defeat it, so reinforced points were designed specifically to overcome mail and even some plate armor.

In the Middle East and India a particular knife with a unique point was created to answer the challenge of mail. Called the Khanjar, most examples feature a broad, slightly curved double edged blade that terminates in a fairly fine point with a heavy diamond cross section. The idea was that the fine point would enter a link of mail initially and then as the full power of the thrust was brought to bear the thickened diamond section would burst the ring and allow the rest of the blade to slide through the flesh.

The Khanjar design is still in use in many parts of the world, and while most people aren't going into battle wearing a mail coat or plate armor, this interesting point style warrants further investigation.

One of the most enduring traits of the Khanjar that should appeal to the modern user is its reinforced point. This point is so thick and strong that a well made version is well-nigh unbreakable and will survive the impact of bone, metal or hard plastic without the danger of breaking or blunting. What's more, most Khanjar points have a slight curve to them which allows a slashing attack, albeit it's somewhat limited in effectiveness due to the extra-thick cross-section of the tip which stymies a deep cut. On the negative side, the Khanjar tip is not "in line" for straight thrusting and produces a wound channel that, like a dagger, is dependent on piercing a vital organ because the point is not conducive to cutting or severing arteries.

There are a number of variations on the idea of the reinforced point, with interesting examples like the "T" cross-section point of the Pesh-Kabaz and the rounded cross section point of the Choora. Both of these point styles will hold up against impact with hard objects almost as well as the Khanjar and may exceed it slightly in ease and depth of penetration.

Many people believe the clip-point-style knife tip was the brainchild of one of America's favorite frontier heroes, Jim Bowie, but the fact is this style really goes back much further than that. Some scholars think it first made an appearance in a bronze format as early as the Hallstatt period (900-5-B.C.). However, it was the Saxons-who adopted it in their national knife called the sax or scramsax in the 4th who were really responsible for spreading it across much of Europe, where it remained quite popular in one form or another until the late Middle Ages.

While there have been a great many versions of this point down throughout the years, the basic idea has always remained the same; namely, a primary convex edge meeting a sharp or semi-sharp concave edge in the center of the blade to form an "in line" point. The result is a tip that pierces almost as well as a dagger due to its fine point and two edges, while enjoying tremendous slashing power due to the deep belly of its primary convex edge.

Some so-called "experts" also believe one of the most important benefits of this style is that the concave or clip side of the point can be used for back cutting. This purported advantage is really without substance because a back cut with a short clip delivers a very weak cut and leaves the hand vulnerable to stop hits, counter cuts, and disarms.

While there is no denying the clip point is a great point style, it has one basic weakness and that is its strength. Most variations are too thin and have too narrow a tip to offer much resistance if they should encounter bone, metal or hard plastic on their way to a flesh target. In fact, even a moderate blow can often break 3/8 in of the tip off some of the best commercial and production blades-or worse, bend them over, making them totally worthless for any stabbing attack.

Some designers, having recognized this failing, have attempted to compensate for it by using thicker steel, raising the point above the center line of the blade to broaden it, and eliminating the fully sharpened false or concave edge, which results in a point that is even more efficient for slashing with only a slight loss in piercing power.

Once technology had advanced to the point where an efficient and effective edged weapon was readily available, it didn't take man long to realize a slashing or cutting attack had an awful lot to offer in close quarter combat. The problem was, which blade and point style was most conducive to this new attack? After much experimentation, one of the best answers to the question appears to be the upswept or trailing point which generally features a long upward-curved point that terminates in a very fine or narrow tip.

One of the best examples of the upswept-point fighter that remains extremely popular even today is the double-edged Jambiya, which is found as far west as Spain and as far east as Indonesia. The major reason behind the continued popularity of the jambiya and the upswept point in general is that, of all the point styles, it is best slashing at all ranges because it presents the thinnest cross section and longest cutting surface of the edge to the target. The result, when applied by a skilled hand, can often be spectacular, creating an extremely long, deep cut that can disable major muscle groups and in some cases even sever the extremities.

The fine point, despite popular opinions, can also be used almost as effectively as a dagger for a stabbing attack when wielded in an "end of the arc" thrust. However, accuracy will never equal that of a straight blade, and the fine point shares all the previously mentioned disadvantages of a dagger.

Perhaps the most versatile and effective of all the point styles for today's knife wielder is the reinforced Tanto point derived from the Japanese long sword. This point differs quite a bit from others discussed because in profile it resembles a right triangle with the hypotenuse being the sharpened edge. When viewed from above the full thickness of the blade can be seen to run to within 1/2 inch of the terminal end of the point.

One of the major benefits of this arrangement is the creation of a virtually unbreakable point that pierces almost as well as a dagger without any of the weaknesses inherent in a fine narrow point.

A second benefit of this point style is it places the maximum amount of edge near the piercing tip to sever arteries encountered along its path when making an insertion.

A third benefit is this same edge behaves much like that of an upswept point due to its acute angle, thereby allowing a slashing attack at all ranges.

A fourth benefit is that a secondary point is crated by the intersection of the relatively short edge of the point with the long edge of the blade. This new point can then be used in a smashing, flicking or raking fashion to pierce upon impact and cut as well.

The only disadvantage this point style suffers from is, it lacks an "in line" point for greater accuracy in delivering straight fencing-style thrusts. However, since these thrusts have limited use in a blade-to-blade encounter, it would seem that the reinforced Tanto point provides the best combination of piercing and cutting without the limitations imposed by lack of strength.

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