Asian wooden bows

[redhawk]

If we talk about Asian Bowery tradition, we?re talking above all about hornbows of Korean, Scythian or Osmanian origine.
Sometimes there are topics focused on Yumi bows and bows of Bhutan, these are made of bamboo.

There are the 2-lam wooden bows of Northern Asia.

According to my knowledge the best known Asian wooden bow is the Andaman- Island bow.
But I?m sure there have to be much more types of wooden bows in the history of Asian bowery? Above all I?m interested in selfbows.

Michael

[jkekoni]

Americ^h^H^H^h^H^h^H Chinese flatbow:
http://www.atarn.org/letters/ltr_dec00.htm

Misc:
http://www.atarn.org/india/sri_lanka.htm

Bhutan self bamboo bow:
http://www.atarn.org/tibet_bhutan/bhutan/bhutan01.htm
(NOTE: not all bamboo works...)

[redhawk]

thanks, jkekoni, that?s what I would like to see, thanks Stephen.
If there is more, it is very welcome.
Michael

[redhawk]

Stephen, as a selfbow this bow should make a 28" drawlength.
I don?t know much about pellet- bows.
Michael

[KenH]

You're right, Redhawk. That Han flatbow should certainly be capable of a 27" or 28" draw. And with limbs approximating 1/2" thick it's going to have a 50# plus draw weight I'd guess. Not a horn bow with "draw to the ear" capability, but certainly capable of significant striking power at significant range.

Given those specs, that bow should be relatively easy to replicate.

[redhawk]

I forget to mention the Scythian bow- finding of olon kurin gol, an all wood- lamination made of 12- 14 slats. Olon kurin gol is a river in the Altai- region.
According to the trees growing there it should not has to be a problem to find the wood a selfbowyer needs, maybe the Scythians did like the hard way to go?
Maybe it?s the same story like it has happened in Northern America: people avoided the Steppe, until they know how to handle it with horses?
So you?ll never see any selfbow- findings there.
We know of selfbows and bows made of bamboo in Northern Siberia, Japan, Indonesia, Andaman Islands...............Europe, regions all around the Central Asian Steppe.
It is hard to believe that there is only one known example of Chinese selfbow, what kind of bows did the ancestors of the Osmanians, Tartars....... use before developing their outstanding hornbows. What about India?

KenH, yes this bow is worth a recoinstruction, a wood I know that is sensemaking in this context is mulberry, one of the best bow- woods.
The bow has well thought out cross- sections.

Michael

[Bede]

There are quite a few bamboo hand bows excavated from the southern state of Chu in the Warring States period. They are often of three laminations with the two arm laminations overlapping in the middle of the bow with a shorter central lamination supporting them. They look like flat bows with a slightly stiffer mid-section.

Stephen has an all wood Chinese longbow. There are Wei Dynasty (or Northern Yan) murals showing horsemen with what appear to be long bows in half cases.

china has had a long tradition of archery that included both wooden bows and composite bows.

[Stephen Selby]

We were discussing this yesterday. Several Niya burials contained two bows: one self longbow and one long-siyah composite like the Khotan bow. They were placed together in the grave. We were unable to account for such a practice.

Self bows have been common in Southwest China. Composite wood bows without horn or sinew were also prevalent in the East of China. Ming manuals refer to 'Western Barbarian Wood Bows." Probably we have tended to pay too much attention to Asian composite bows and ignored the longbows and flatbows.

Andeman bows are a very special case. South Indian bows and the bows of Sri Lanka were simple wood bows made of palm wood. Malays have told me that their traditional bows were made of bamboo.

S

[redhawk]

Thank you for the comments.

I asked for Asian wooden bows, cause I can?t believe that the composite bows we?re so often discussing here came out of nothing, there must have been some forerunners and reasons for to develop composites.

It would be nice if Stephen could post some more infos about Chinese wooden bows?

Michael

[Stephen Selby]

I'll see what I can come up with. Thing is, they're often mentioned in reports; but I can't be sure how accurate the reports are. To be honest, I have sat in a (rather dark) archaeology institute and examined a 'wooden bow'; but I was unable to conclude finally that the original item had not included other materials.

I'll be on a dig in Xinjiang this autumn and I'll pay more attention to the self bows there. I'll scan the report on the two-bow burial and upload interesting bits here.

S

[Stephen Selby]

Here is a photo of some Andeman (Sentinelese) bows. I have the bow that belonged to the boy standing to the right.

[jack farrell]

Again, publications from the bows and arrows museum, Seoul, contain several historical reproductions of wood bows. One interesting item has recurves tied onto a wood bow. These folks are pretty serious so the bows should be considered.

Michael and everyone, WTAF is now accepting applications. Why don't you go there and see what they have. It is a country with a serious heritage and interest in archery. Koreans are interested in all kinds of traditional archery and are most hospitable people. You will be treated like a diplomat.

See events below.

[redhawk]

According to my knowledge woods used for bowery used in Asia are mulberry, compression pine and larch by Siberian tribes, tamarisk(Scythians). That?s all what is proofed.
But I guess there are much more woods: elm, ash, locust...............all are highly appreciated in bowery. There must a lots of yew and juniper too in Asia, what about Asian tropical woods? Maybe palm?

Jack, if it would be possible I would like it very much to meet the WTAF.
But its a question of date. I?m very busy guiding bow- classes at schools, so the holidays in summer(August- 15th of September) would be the only possible date to make the WTAF.
Maybe I could do it next year?
Michael

[Alex S.]

I dont know if you have read old Japanese text, though, they have list several wood that are used in old Japanese selfbows.

Yamato people, or people who make modern Japanese population came from other origin to Japan. They developed longer bows that later become modern yumi most are familiar with. Though, before its just a wood bow, of one piece wood. keyaki (Zelkova serrata) was mentioned many times, and was used for war bow since selfbow was more durable and cheaper to make than laminated yumi which was not strong against all weather. That is why old war yumi made in wood composite form has many wrapping of rattan binding and very thick urushi coating. This type of selfbow is called maruki yumi or log wood bow.

Another wood that is mentioned is mulberry, though, this was mentioned as more for gift to newborn son, though it is possible it is also used for selfbow since bowyers knew its a bow wood.

Also, there is one species that was confusing. The Japanese name for this wood is used for three species actually, so it take me longer to find which they talk about. The three woods using this name are Melia azedarach, Santalum album, and Euonymus hamiltonianus all usually refered to just as 檀. Though, later you find different more specific spelling of name. This now defines these three woods as 白檀 (biyakudan), 栴檀 (sendan) and
栴弓　(mayumi). Biyakudan is sandlewood, and does not grow in Japan, but was imported through China from India to Japan to use for incense. Sendan is Chinaberry and uses the same character because its wood has strong fragrant similar to sandlewood. Another characteristic of sandlewood is it is hard and heavy, and the last wood mayumi (spindlewood) is also hard and heavy wood, so it is given the same character. The difference is the last character for its name, yumi, which means bow. This defines it as a bow wood, and so I believe it is this wood they refer to for being used as bows. I have tried the wood and it is very elastic and hard, it fits their description very well.

So, we can say that Zelkova serrata and Euonymus hamiltonianus are definitely selfbow woods, and mulberry should be included.

For pre-Yamato people, there are Ainu bows. These were much shorter bows, cannot remember exact but about 140 cm, some smaller. Many were said to be quite crude, especially a bow made for trap. The main wood they use is yew wood. In Ainu it is called onko and ichii in Japanese. Another wood that is mentioned is Torreya nucifera, which is called kaya (榧). This wood is also sometimes mentioned for use as maruki yumi, so its possible that Yamato people use it too. Ainu bows were also described to have binding from bark of tree (possibly elm inner bark or birch since elm inner bark was widely used in Ainu craft and birch is very common in Hokkaido area) and also a coating of urushi.
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[jack farrell]

Alex; Japanese also use Haze ? (Sumac) for laminates in bamboo yumi as well as Catalpa. Were these used in self bows?

Your info is good, thanks.

Stephen and Yi Degang listed 5 old preferred woods for Chinese hornbows.

Japanese also used whale baleen for carriage type self bows. -j-