Bows
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More Archery pages
Self-bows
Bows in this period are classed as self-bows, being made from a single piece of D section wood, usually yew. Nocks are cut straight into the wood. [HALPIN 2008: p.40-41]
Art
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Literature
- [MANLEY 1985]
- [STEPHENSON 2007]
Archaeology
- Waterford, Ireland
- Ballinderry, Ireland, late C10th. [HALPIN 2008: p.184-185] 1 Complete bow.
- Dublin, Ireland, C11th / C12th. [HALPIN 2008: p.184-185] 1 Complete bow, 7 bow fragments.
- Hedeby, Denmark, [PAULSEN 1999] 1 Complete, 6 fragments
- Leiden, Netherlands, 800-950AD [DE STOUTE 2008] 1 Complete bow
Other finds:
Nydem, Vimose and Kragehul, Denmark bog finds also had bows and arrows.
... with deflexed nocks
A deflexed nock is where the nock is deliberately strongly angled towards the string.
Art
Archaeology
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Discussion
Almost all of the Anglo-Saxon manuscripts show bows with nocks deflexed away from the archer, the complete reverse of the deflexed nocks found in archaeology.
Re-curved (Reflexed) Self-bow
A re-curve self-bow is where the stave of the bow is deliberately curved away from the string.
Archaeology
- Ballinderry, Ireland, late C10th. [HALPIN 2008: p.184-185] 1 Complete bow.
- Hedeby, Denmark, [PAULSEN 1999]
Discussion
Many of the Hedeby bows are shaped this way, along with the Ballinderry bow from Ireland. Paulsen [PAULSEN 1999] makes the case that this is “caused by shrinkage of the soft sapwood in the front”, a theory that is rejected by Halpin [HALPIN 2008: p.61] who cites a number of authors including Hardy who makes the comment that the bows from the Mary Rose were also re-curved and “that no process during the lifetime of the bows, or after deposition, are convincing explanations for this feature”.
Bow Strings
Archaeology
- Wincott Heckett has suggested that a tablet-woven tubular silk cord, dated to mid C12th, from Waterford may be a bowstring. [HALPIN 2008: p.61] Halpin then quotes Soar who suggests that the most common material for bow strings was hemp.
- York, England. A lump of beeswax with a groove caused by rubbing against a thread or string. Walton-Rogers comments that beeswax was often used on bow strings [WALTON ROGERS 1997: p.1785]
Discussion
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See Also
Catalogue of Bow finds
Archery
References
<nocite> DESTOUTE2008 HALPIN2008 MANLEY1985 PAULSEN1999 STEPHENSON2007 WALTON1997 </nocite> <biblio force=false>#Template:Bib</biblio>