Ancient Engineering SeriesMANGONEL.com
Ballistic Technologies of Antiquity
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Science Project Experiments Catapult Kit - S.P.E.C.K. (tm)
The Ultimate Science Project Experimenter's Catapult Kit! It's fully adjustable, multi-configurable and repeatable. Now made from top-quality Engineered solid-oak plywood.
   $59.00  more info


The Science Project Experiments Catapult Kit
The Ultimate Science Project Experimenter's Catapult Kit! It's fully adjustable, multi-configurable and repeatable. Now made from top-quality Engineered hardwood plywood.
   $59.00  more info


TK3 Model Trebuchet, Hobbyist Version
The TK3 Trebuchet Model Kit is an ideal science project machine! Use the hanging counterweight bucket for variable weights, or convert it to a fixed counterweight machine, wheels, or no wheels. The choice is yours!
   $69.00  more info
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Interesting Notes

What is a Mangonel?


The term "mangonel" literlally means "engine of war." It is a ballistic device, usually some type of artillery. In other words, a catapult. But "catapult" is a more general word that includes a broad range of things that use mechanical means to shoot a projectile, including slingshots and aircraft carrier launch systems. So a mangonel is a unique type of catapult.

The word Mangonel derives from the ancient Greek word "Manganon", literally meaning "engine of war". The Romans called it a Manganum. In pre-medieval French the word Manganum was changed to Manganeau, and the English changed that to Mangonel in the 1300s.

The history gets a little sketchy in the middle ages, but some historians believe that "mangonel" was shortened to the word "gonnel" about the same time that cannons were being developed, and later still, "gonnel" was shortened to "gun." And to this day, in the military a gun is strictly big artillery. (Rifles and pistols are referred to as "weapons", NOT "guns".)

The three most common types of ancient mangonels are the Greek Ballista, The Roman Onager, and the Trebuchet.

In France, the word Mangonel is used for a Trebuchet that uses a fixed counterweight for power. (The other kind of trebuchet, the hanging counterweight type, is called a "Trebuchet". Go figure!)

The English use the term Mangonel and Onager interchangeably for the Roman single-arm torsion machine.

The Greek catapult, probably the first machine to be called a mangonel, was also known as the Ballista and is where we get the word "ballistic".