| Davidka | |
|---|---|
 Davidka mortar, Givati Museum, Israel | |
| Type | Mortar |
| Place of origin | Israel |
| Service history | |
| In service | 1948 |
| Used by | Palmach |
| Wars | 1948 Arab–Israeli War |
| Production history | |
| Designer | David Leibowitch |
| Designed | 1947–48 |
| Produced | 1948 |
| No. built | Six |
| Specifications | |
| Shell | Explosive grenade |
| Shell weight | 40 kilograms (88.2 lb) |
| Caliber | 3 inches (7.62 cm) |
| Filling | TNT |
| Filling weight | 60 pounds (27.2 kg) |
The Davidka (Yiddish: דוידקה, "Little David" or "Made by David" ) was a homemade Israeli mortar used in Safed and Jerusalem during 1947–1949 Palestine war. Its bombs were reported to be extremely loud, but very inaccurate and otherwise of little value beyond terrifying opponents; they proved particularly useful in scaring away both Arab soldiers and civilians. It is nominally classified as a 3-inch (76.2 mm) mortar, although the bomb was considerably larger.[1][2]
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Bernard Joseph (1960). The Faithful City: The Siege of Jerusalem, 1948. New York: Simon & Schuster. p. 73. LCCN 60010976. OCLC 266413.
It fired a bomb of nails and metal scrap which exploded with some force and - what was more important - with tremendous noise and fury.
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Collins, Larry; Lapierre, Dominique (1972). O Jerusalem!. London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson. p. 152. ISBN 978-0-297-99459-6. LCCN 73160924.
They fired a shell made out of water pipes and packed with explosives, nails and bits of scrap metal.