DNA Tests Show Arrow Is Not From Capt. Cook

An arrow long thought to have been made from a leg bone of British explorer Capt. James Cook was probably made from an animal bone, DNA tests reveal. The six-inch long arrow, attached to a narrow metal point, is part of the collection of the Australian Museum in Sydney.

Cook was killed, along with four marines, in Hawaii on Feb. 14, 1779, during a dispute with locals. His remains were returned to the crew aboard his ship Resolution three days later and then buried at sea. But some people think some of his body may have been kept by the Hawaiians, or possibly that his entire remains were swapped with another sailor’s.