Art Standing With Bow at the Ready Art Standing With Bow

Pre-gunpowder ranged weapon arrangement

"Bows and Arrows" redirects hither. For the album by The Walkmen, meet Bows + Arrows.

A young Ethiopian Karo boy holding a bow and pointer

The bow and arrow is a ranged weapon system consisting of an elastic launching device (bow) and long-shafted projectiles (arrows). Humans used bows and arrows for hunting and assailment long before recorded history, and the practice was common to many prehistoric cultures. They were important weapons of war from ancient history until the early modern period, where they were rendered increasingly obsolete by the development of the more powerful and accurate firearms, and were eventually dropped from warfare. Today, bows and arrows are mostly used for hunting and sports.

Archery is the art, practice, or skill of using bows to shoot arrows.^[1] A person who shoots arrows with a bow is called a bowman or an archer. Someone who makes bows is known as a bowyer,^[2] someone who makes arrows is a fletcher,^[3] and someone who manufactures metal arrowheads is an arrowsmith.^[4]

Basic design and apply [edit]

Cartoon a bow, from a 1908 archery manual

A bow consists of a semi-rigid but elastic arc with a loftier-tensile bowstring joining the ends of the two limbs of the bow. An arrow is a projectile with a pointed tip and a long shaft with stabilizer fins (fletching) towards the back, with a narrow notch (nock) at the very stop to contact the bowstring.

To load an arrow for shooting (nocking an arrow), the archer places an arrow across the center of the bow with the bowstring in the arrow's nock. To shoot, the archer holds the bow at its center with one hand and pulls back (draws) the arrow and the bowstring with the other (typically the ascendant hand). This flexes the two limbs of the bow rearwards, which perform the function of a pair of cantilever springs to store elastic energy.

Typically while maintaining the describe, the archer aims the shot intuitively or by sighting forth the arrow. Then archer releases (looses) the draw, assuasive the limbs' stored energy to catechumen into kinetic energy transmitted via the bowstring to the arrow, propelling information technology to fly forward with high velocity.^[5]

A container or bag for additional arrows for quick reloading is called a quiver.

When not in use, bows are generally kept unstrung, meaning one or both ends of the bowstring are discrete from the bow. This removes all residual tension on the bow and tin can aid prevent it from losing strength or elasticity over time. Many bow designs also let it straighten out more than completely, reducing the space needed to store the bow. Returning the bowstring to its set up-to-use position is called stringing the bow.

History [edit]

The oldest known evidence of arrows comes from S African sites such as Sibudu Cave, where likely arrowheads have been constitute, dating from approximately 72,000–60,000 years ago.^{[half-dozen] [seven] [8] [ix] [10] [11]}

In Eurasia, the bow and arrow reappears around the Upper Paleolithic. Subsequently the end of the last glacial period, use of the bow seems to have spread to every inhabited region, except for Australasia and most of Oceania.^[12]

The earliest probable arrowheads plant exterior of Africa were discovered in 2020 in Fa Hien Cave, Sri Lanka. It has been dated to 48,000 years ago. "Bow-and-pointer hunting at the Sri Lankan site likely focused on monkeys and smaller animals, such every bit squirrels, Langley says. Remains of these creatures were found in the same sediment as the bone points."^{[13] [xiv]}

The earliest definite remains of bow and arrow from Europe are possible fragments from Frg institute at Mannheim-Vogelstang dated 17,500–xviii,000 years ago, and at Stellmoor dated 11,000 years ago. Azilian points found in Grotte du Bichon, Switzerland, aslope the remains of both a conduct and a hunter, with flint fragments found in the bear'south tertiary vertebra, suggest the use of arrows at 13,500 years ago.^[15]

At the site of Nataruk in Turkana Canton, Kenya, obsidian bladelets found embedded in a skull and within the thoracic cavity of another skeleton, suggest the use of stone-tipped arrows every bit weapons about 10,000 years ago.^[16]

The oldest extant bows in one piece are the elm Holmegaard bows from Denmark, which were dated to 9,000 BCE. Several bows from Holmegaard, Kingdom of denmark, date 8,000 years agone.^[17] Loftier-operation wooden bows are currently made following the Holmegaard design. The Stellmoor bow fragments from northern Germany were dated to near 8,000 BCE, but they were destroyed in Hamburg during the Second World War, before carbon xiv dating was available; their age is attributed past archaeological association.^[18]

The bow was an important weapon for both hunting and warfare from prehistoric times until the widespread use of gunpowder weapons in the 16th century.^{[ citation needed ]} Information technology was also common in ancient warfare, although certain cultures would not favor them. Greek poet Archilocus expressed scorn for fighting with bows and slings.^[nineteen]

Organised warfare with bows concluded in the early to mid-17th century in Western Europe, but it persisted into the 19th century in Eastern^{[ clarification needed ]} cultures, including hunting and warfare in the New Earth. In the Canadian Arctic, bows were made until the terminate of the 20th century for hunting caribou, for instance at Igloolik.^[20] The bow has more than recently been used as a weapon of tribal warfare in some parts of Sub-Saharan Africa; an example was documented in 2009 in Republic of kenya when Kisii people and Kalenjin people clashed, resulting in four deaths.^{[21] [22]}

The British upper class led a revival of archery as a sport in the late 18th century.^[23] Sir Ashton Lever, an antiquarian and collector, formed the Toxophilite Guild in London in 1781, under the patronage of George IV, and so Prince of Wales.

Construction [edit]

Parts of the bow [edit]

The basic elements of a bow are a pair of curved rubberband limbs, traditionally fabricated from woods, joined by a riser. However cocky bows such as the English longbow are made of a unmarried piece of wood encompassing both limbs and the grip. Both ends of the limbs are continued by a cord known as the bow cord.^[5] By pulling the string backwards the archer exerts pinch force on the string-facing section, or belly, of the limbs besides as placing the outer section, or back, nether tension. While the string is held, this stores the energy later released in putting the arrow to flight. The force required to hold the string stationary at total depict is often used to express the power of a bow, and is known equally its draw weight, or weight.^{[24] [25]} Other things existence equal, a higher depict weight ways a more powerful bow, which is able to project heavier arrows at the same velocity or the aforementioned arrow at a greater velocity.

The various parts of the bow tin be subdivided into further sections. The topmost limb is known equally the upper limb, while the bottom limb is the lower limb. At the tip of each limb is a nock, which is used to adhere the bowstring to the limbs. The riser is usually divided into the grip, which is held by the archer, as well equally the arrow balance and the bow window. The arrow residual is a pocket-size ledge or extension above the grip which the arrow rests upon while existence aimed. The bow window is that function of the riser above the grip, which contains the arrow residue.^[5]

In bows fatigued and held by hand, the maximum describe weight is determined by the force of the archer.^[25] The maximum distance the string could exist displaced and thus the longest arrow that could be loosed from information technology, a bow'south describe length, is determined past the size of the archer.^[26]

A composite bow uses a combination of materials to create the limbs, allowing the use of materials specialized for the different functions of a bow limb. The classic blended bow uses wood for lightness and dimensional stability in the core, horn to store compression energy, and sinew for its ability to store energy in tension. Such bows, typically Asian, would often employ a strong cease on the limb finish, having the effect of a recurve.^[27] In this type of bow, this is known by the Standard arabic proper name 'siyah'.^[28]

Modern construction materials for bows include laminated woods, fiberglass, metals,^[29] and carbon cobweb components.

Arrows [edit]

Schematic of an arrow showing its parts.

An arrow usually consists of a shaft with an arrowhead attached to the front end, with fletchings and a nock at the other.^[30] Modern arrows are normally fabricated from carbon fibre, aluminum, fiberglass, and wood shafts. Carbon shafts have the advantage that they do not bend or warp, but they can often be as well light weight to shoot from some bows and are expensive. Aluminum shafts are less expensive than carbon shafts, but they can curve and warp from utilize. Wood shafts are the least expensive pick but often will not be identical in weight and size to each other and break more oft than the other types of shafts.^[31] Arrow sizes vary profoundly across cultures and range from very short ones that require the use of special equipment to exist shot to ones in apply in the Amazon River jungles that are 2.6 1000 (8.v anxiety) long. Most modern arrows are 55 to 75 cm (22 to thirty inches) in length.^[xxx]

Arrows come in many types, among which are breasted, bob-tailed, barreled, clout, and target.^[30] A breasted arrow is thickest at the area correct backside the fletchings, and tapers towards the (nock) and head.^[32] A bob-tailed arrow is thickest right behind the head, and tapers to the nock.^[33] A barrelled pointer is thickest in the center of the arrow.^[34] Target arrows are those arrows used for target shooting rather than warfare or hunting, and unremarkably have simple arrowheads.^[35]

For safety reasons, a bow should never exist shot without an arrow nocked; without an arrow, the energy that is normally transferred into the projectile is instead directed back into the bow itself, which will cause harm to the bow'southward limbs.

Arrowheads [edit]

The end of the pointer that is designed to striking the target is called the arrowhead. Usually, these are dissever items that are attached to the arrow shaft by either tangs or sockets. Materials used in the by for arrowheads include flint, bone, horn, or metal. Most modern arrowheads are made of steel, but wood and other traditional materials are withal used occasionally. A number of different types of arrowheads are known, with the most common being bodkins, broadheads, and piles.^[36] Bodkin heads are simple spikes fabricated of metal of diverse shapes, designed to pierce armour.^[33] A broadhead arrowhead is ordinarily triangular or leaf-shaped and has a sharpened edge or edges. Broadheads are commonly used for hunting.^[37] A pile arrowhead is a simple metal cone, either sharpened to a point or somewhat blunt, that is used mainly for target shooting. A pile caput is the same diameter equally the arrow shaft and is normally just fitted over the tip of the pointer.^[38] Other heads are known, including the blunt caput, which is flat at the finish and is used for hunting small game or birds, and is designed to not pierce the target nor embed itself in trees or other objects and brand recovery difficult.^[33] Another type of arrowhead is a barbed head, normally used in warfare or hunting.^[thirty]

Bowstrings [edit]

Bowstrings may have a nocking point marked on them, which serves to marker where the arrow is fitted to the bowstring before shooting.^[39] The expanse around the nocking point is usually bound with thread to protect the area around the nocking point from wear by the archer's hands. This department is called the serving.^[xl] At one end of the bowstring a loop is formed, which is permanent. The other finish of the bowstring also has a loop, but this is not permanently formed into the bowstring but is synthetic by tying a knot into the string to course a loop. Traditionally this knot is known as the archer'southward knot, only is a form of the timber hitch. The knot can exist adjusted to lengthen or shorten the bowstring. The adjustable loop is known equally the "tail".^[41] The cord is oftentimes twisted (this existence called the "flemish twist").

Bowstrings take been synthetic of many materials throughout history, including fibres such as flax, silk, and hemp.^[42] Other materials used were animal guts, animal sinews, and rawhide. Modern fibres such as Dacron or Kevlar are now used in commercial bowstring construction, likewise equally steel wires in some chemical compound bows.^[43] Compound bows have a mechanical organisation of pulley cams over which the bowstring is wound.^[forty] Nylon is useful only in emergency situations, as it stretches too much.^[44]

Types of bow [edit]

In that location is no unmarried accepted system of nomenclature of bows.^[45] Bows may be described by various characteristics including the materials used, the length of the draw that they permit, the shape of the bow in sideways view, and the shape of the limb in cantankerous-section.^{[46] [47]}

Usually-used descriptors for bows include:

By side profile [edit]

• Recurve bow: a bow with the tips curving away from the archer. The curves straighten out as the bow is drawn and the return of the tip to its curved state after release of the arrow adds actress velocity to the arrow.^[48]
• Reflex bow: a bow whose entire limbs curve away from the archer when unstrung. The curves are opposite to the direction in which the bow flexes while drawn.^[48]

By fabric [edit]

• Self bow: a bow made from one piece of wood.^[twoscore]
• Composite bow: a bow made of more than than one textile.^[46]

By cross-department of limb [edit]

• Longbow: a self bow with limbs rounded in cross-section, about the same height as the archer and then every bit to allow a full draw, commonly over 1.5 thousand (5 feet) long. The traditional English language longbow was ordinarily made of yew wood, but other woods are also used.^[49]
• Flatbow: the limbs are approximately rectangular in cantankerous-section. This was traditional in many Native American societies and was constitute to exist the most efficient shape for bow limbs past American engineers in the 20th century^{[ commendation needed ]}

Other characteristics [edit]

• Takedown bow: a bow that can be disassembled for transportation, usually consisting of three parts: 2 limbs and a riser, in addition to the string.
• Compound bow: a bow with mechanical amplifiers to assistance with drawing the bowstring. Usually, these amplifiers are asymmetric pulleys called cams (though they are not actually cams) at the ends of the limbs, which provide a mechanical advantage (known as the let-off) while belongings the bow in full draw.^[50] Such bows typically have high depict weights and are usually drawn with a release aid with a trigger mechanism for a consistently make clean release.
• Crossbow: a bow mounted horizontally on a frame similar to a firearm stock, which has a locking mechanism for holding the bowstring at full draw.^[51] Crossbows typically shoot arrow-like darts called bolts or "quarrels", rather than normal arrows.^[52]
• Footbow: a bow meant to be used with the legs and arms while lying down and used in the electric current altitude record for the furthest arrow shot.^[53]

Meet as well [edit]

• Sling (weapon)
• Slingshot

Citations [edit]

• Collins, Desmond (1973). Background to archaeology: U.k. in its European setting (Revised ed.). Cambridge University Press. ISBN978-0-521-20155-1.
• Elmer, R. P. (1946). Target Archery: With a History of the Sport in America. New York: A.A. Knopf. OCLC 1482628.
• Heath, E. Chiliad. (1978). Archery: The Modernistic Approach. London: Faber and Faber. ISBN978-0-571-04957-8.
• Paterson, W. F. (1984). Encyclopaedia of Archery. New York: St. Martin's Press. ISBN978-0-312-24585-six.
• Sorrells, Brian J. (2004). Beginner's Guide to Traditional Archery. Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books. ISBN978-0-8117-3133-ane.
• Stone, George Cameron (1999) [1934]. A Glossary of the Construction, Decoration, and Employ of Arms and Armor in All Countries and in All Times (Reprint ed.). Mineola: Dover Publications. ISBN978-0-486-40726-v.

References [edit]

1. ^ Paterson Encyclopaedia of Archery p. 17
2. ^ Paterson Encyclopaedia of Archery p. 31
3. ^ Paterson Encyclopaedia of Archery p. 56
4. ^ Paterson Encyclopaedia of Archery p. twenty
5. ^ ^{a b c} Paterson Encyclopaedia of Archery pp. 27–28
6. ^ Backwell, Lucinda; d'Errico, Francesco; Wadley, Lyn (2008). "Middle Stone Age bone tools from the Howiesons Poort layers, Sibudu Cavern, S Africa". Journal of Archaeological Scientific discipline. 35 (6): 1566–1580. doi:10.1016/j.jas.2007.11.006.
7. ^ Wadley, Lyn (2008). "The Howieson's Poort manufacture of Sibudu Cave". South African Archaeological Society Goodwin Series. 10.
8. ^ Lombard M, Phillips L (2010). "Indications of bow and rock-tipped pointer use 64,000 years ago in KwaZulu-Natal, Due south Africa". Antiquity. 84 (325): 635–648. doi:10.1017/S0003598X00100134. S2CID 162438490.
9. ^ Lombard M (2011). "Quartz-tipped arrows older than 60 ka: further utilize-trace evidence from Sibudu, Kwa-Zulu-Natal, S Africa". Journal of Archaeological Science. 38 (eight): 1918–1930. doi:10.1016/j.jas.2011.04.001.
10. ^ Backwell, Lucinda; Bradfield, Justin; Carlson, Kristian J.; Jashashvili, Tea; Wadley, Lyn; d'Errico, Francesco (2018). "The antiquity of bow-and-arrow technology: Prove from Middle Stone Age layers at Sibudu Cave". Antiquity. 92 (362): 289–303. doi:10.15184/aqy.2018.11. S2CID 166154740.
11. ^ Lombard G (2020). "The tip cross-exclusive areas of poisoned bone arrowheads from southern Africa". Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports. 33: 102477. doi:10.1016/j.jasrep.2020.102477. S2CID 224889105.
12. ^ M. H. Monroe, Aboriginal Weapons and Tools "The favoured weapon of the Aborigines was the spear and spear thrower. The fact that they never adopted the bow and arrow has been debated for a long time. During post-glacial times the bow and arrow were beingness used in every inhabited part of the world except Australia. A number of reasons for this accept been put forward [...] Captain Cook saw the bow and arrow being used on an island close to the mainland at Greatcoat York, equally it was in the Torres Strait islands and New Guinea. Simply the Aborigines preferred the spear. "
13. ^ "Clues to the earliest known bow-and-arrow hunting exterior Africa have been institute". www.sciencenews.org. June 12, 2020.
14. ^ Bows and arrows and circuitous symbolic displays 48,000 years ago in the South Asian tropics. Langley, Michelle C.; Amano, Noel; Wedage, Oshan; Deraniyagala, Siran; Pathmalal, M.M; Perera, Nimal; Boivin, Nicole; Petraglia, Michael D.; Roberts, Patrick (2020). "Bows and arrows and complex symbolic displays 48,000 years ago in the S Asian tropics". Science Advances. vi (24): eaba3831. Bibcode:2020SciA....6.3831L. doi:10.1126/sciadv.aba3831. PMC7292635. PMID 32582854.
15. ^ « La grotte du Bichon, un site préhistorique des montagnes neuchâteloises  », Archéologie neuchâteloise 42, 2009.
16. ^ Lahr, Grand. Mirazón; Rivera, F.; Power, R.K.; Mounier, A.; Copsey, B.; Crivellaro, F.; Edung, J.E.; Fernandez, J.G. Maillo; Kiarie, C. (2016). "Inter-group violence among early on Holocene hunter-gatherers of West Turkana, Kenya". Nature. 529 (7586): 394–398. Bibcode:2016Natur.529..394L. doi:10.1038/nature16477. PMID 26791728. S2CID 4462435.
17. ^ O'Driscoll, Corey A; Thompson, Jessica C (2018). "The origins and early elaboration of projectile engineering science". Evolutionary Anthropology: Issues, News, and Reviews. 27 (ane): xxx–45. doi:10.1002/evan.21560. PMID 29446556.
18. ^ Collins Groundwork to Archeology
19. ^ Pritchett, W. Kendrick (1974). The Greek State at State of war: Part V. Academy of California Press. ISBN9780520073746.
20. ^ "Bow fabricated by Noah Piagguttuq 1994".
21. ^ "History of Bows". 2016-12-16. Archived from the original on 2017-08-02.
22. ^ "Kenyan Tribes Wage a War With Bows and Arrows – Photo Essays". Time. Archived from the original on xix October 2017. Retrieved four May 2018.
23. ^ Johnes, Martin (2004). "Archery, Romance and Elite Culture in England and Wales, c. 1780–1840". History. 89 (294): 193–208. doi:10.1111/j.1468-229X.2004.00297.ten. Archived from the original on 2010-06-17. Retrieved 2013-03-26 .
24. ^ Paterson Encyclopaedia of Archery p. 111
25. ^ ^{a b} Sorrells Beginner'south Guide pp. 20–21
26. ^ Sorrells Beginner'south Guide pp. xix–twenty
27. ^ Paterson Encyclopaedia of Archery p. 38
28. ^ Elmer Target Archery
29. ^ Heath Archery pp. xv–18
30. ^ ^{a b c d} Paterson Encyclopaedia of Archery pp. 18–19
31. ^ Sorrells Beginner's Guide pp. 21–22
32. ^ Paterson Encyclopaedia of Archery p. 32
33. ^ ^{a b c} Paterson Encyclopaedia of Archery pp. 25–26
34. ^ Paterson Encyclopaedia of Archery p. 24
35. ^ Paterson Encyclopaedia of Archery p. 103
36. ^ Paterson Encyclopaedia of Archery p. 19
37. ^ Paterson Encyclopaedia of Archery p. 33
38. ^ Paterson Encyclopaedia of Archery p. 85
39. ^ Paterson Encyclopaedia of Archery p. 80
40. ^ ^{a b c} Paterson Encyclopaedia of Archery pp. 93–94
41. ^ Heath Archery pp. 27–28
42. ^ "Grow Your Own Bowstring". world wide web.primitiveways.com. Archived from the original on 23 July 2017. Retrieved 4 May 2018.
43. ^ Paterson Encyclopaedia of Archery pp. 28–29
44. ^ "DIY Bow Weapons Making Series DIY Projects Arts and crafts Ideas & How To's for Home Decor with Videos". diyready.com. 15 May 2014. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved iv May 2018.
45. ^ Paterson Encyclopaedia of Archery p. 37
46. ^ ^{a b} Heath Archery pp. 14–sixteen
47. ^ Miller, Andrew (April 26, 2022). "Different Types of Bows". HuntingFellow . Retrieved April 26, 2022.
48. ^ ^{a b} Paterson Encyclopaedia of Archery pp. ninety–91
49. ^ Paterson Encyclopaedia of Archery pp. 73–75
50. ^ Paterson Encyclopaedia of Archery pp. 38–40
51. ^ Paterson Encyclopaedia of Archery p. 41
52. ^ Paterson Encyclopaedia of Archery p. 26
53. ^ Cooke, Patrick (December 2021). "The Quest to Shoot an Arrow Farther Than Anyone Has Earlier". Smithsonian . Retrieved 26 December 2021.

Further reading [edit]

• The Traditional Bowyers Bible Volume 1. 1992 The Lyons Press. ISBN 1-58574-085-iii
• The Traditional Bowyers Bible Volume two. 1992 The Lyons Press. ISBN 1-58574-086-1
• The Traditional Bowyers Bible Volume 3. 1994 The Lyons Press. ISBN 1-58574-087-X
• The Traditional Bowyers Bible Volume 4. 2008 The Lyons Printing. ISBN 978-0-9645741-6-8
• Gray, David, Bows of the Earth. The Lyons Press, 2002. ISBN 1-58574-478-6.

External links [edit]

• The Asian Traditional Archery Research Network
• Simon Archery Collection From The Manchester Museum, The University of Manchester
• An Approach to the Study of Ancient Archery using Mathematical Modeling

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Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bow_and_arrow

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