Those coupling-sleeves again...

[Crispianus]

"The height of the male tree is at most 12 cubits, the length of the longest macedonian spear"

Theophrastus means only that the longest sarissa of his day was the same length as the height of the male cornelwood tree. It does not mean it was made of such wood.

Quite so and the reason why I dont say that directly... however it is implied, to my mind it would require some proof ie someone actually makes a one piece pike from cornel wood... or finding a complete example.

In any case this might interest, "Sarissa" by Manolis Andronicos, I dont know if this is the original article thats lead to all this speculation or not, but its interesting reading.... you can obtain a copy by clicking on the "pdf" button next to the article window.

Context for the find is everything:
Its an old graveyard going back hundreds of years with some graves/tumuli being reused or added too.
The actual chamber was very small 1.5 x 2m.
It was a cremation burial, the weapons appear to have been cremated or at least had the shafts removed as the nails were missing.
It had been robbed from the top and disturbed.
The weapon components were scattered, its entirely possible that something not present originally or not intended could have entered the tomb when it was robbed.
Its possible the chamber had been used more then once since it has a step at the top suggesting some other form of lid, the final covering did not use this step.

From the article translated via google:

"D (Fig. 8). Iron socket. Narrower in the middle, it flares out at both
ends, thus having a slightly concave profile. It is of circular section
inside, and polygonal outside (fourteen sides). Both sides of the
plate have not been perfectly adjusted, so that it remains between them,
up and down, a slit, which is wider over 3/4 of the length.
Length: 0.17 m.
Diam a: 0.028 m, b: 0.032 m.
Thickness of the wall a: 0.002 / 0.003 m, B: 0.003 / 0.005 m"

   

The photo scale of 1/3 and the "sleeve" measurements of 3.2cm do not coincide, being around 50% larger when compared with the large spearhead socket width of 3.6cm which is also at 1/3 scale, in other words the sleeve photo should be reduced by 1/3.
Its clear that the length measurement is wrong and should be no more then @11cm.

The "Sleeve" is made from a piece of iron plate that has been formed into a tube, rather like the grip (Högonas sword) I previously mentioned from an earlier era, except that the join appears to be open, not brazed (or welded) shut, although this may have been destroyed during cremation.