Elf arrows are stone age arrowhead-shaped flints found throughout Europe, the British Isles, and northern Africa.

Medieval witches were thought to have used these as weapons against people and animals.

If a person was shot with an elf arrow, she or he would come down with fatal and mysterious supernatural sicknesses. 

As a common target of witches, cattle are also killed by elf arrows. The term elf-shot is still applied to sick animals in some Celtic areas.

However, stricken cattle can be saved if:

• They are touched with the arrow
• The arrow is dipped in  water
• The water is given to the cattle to drink