Crossbows in Africa ??? anyone have any further information ?
 

Found this when researching another subject …….I had no idea that the cross bow was in regular use in Africa……you learn a new thing everyday.

Has anyone any pictures/photos of African crossbows ?

Exert below...

Scholars have long been aware of the occurrence of crossbows in a rather limited area of west-central Africa. Thought to have been introduced into the region by European merchantmen (variously attributed to vessels from Holland, Denmark, and Portugal) possibly as early as the fourteenth or fifteenth century (Balfour 1911 :642-643; Wilbur I 937:436), this weapon has been documented among a number of tribes and/or in various locales. Although likely an incomplete listing of their distribution and tribal associations, the majority of occurrences of this weapon in Africa are situated in the various nations adjacent to the northeastern shore of the Gulf of Guinea along the western coast of the continent. Specifically, these implements have been recorded among: the Fan, Ba-fan, and Mpongwe of Gabon; the Medjarnbi, Bakuele, Sanga, and Baya of the (French) Congo; the Fanwe of Spanish (Equatorial) Guinea; unspecified peoples on the island colony of Fernando Poo (Bioko Island, now part of Equatorial Guinea); the Ba-Kwiri, Ya-unde, Bali, and Indiki of Cameroon; unspecified groups in Nigeria; the Yoruba of Niger; and the Mandingo of Benin (Balfour 1911; Powell-Cotton 1929). Significantly, this distributional area has extensive overlap with the region historically known as the slave coast which extended from the mouth of the Volta River (Ghana) on the west to the mouth of the Niger River (Nigeria) on the east. This region covers the coastal portions of the present day nations of Nigeria, Benin, Togo, and eastern Ghana. It is more than reasonable to suggest that various tribesmen conversant with crossbow production were taken captive, sold as slaves, and transported along with their technology to the New World.
Though there are many variations of the specific features exhibited by these implements from tribe to tribe in their area of distribution in western Africa, the description of a crossbow collected in the late 1800's amongthe Fan of Gabon is generally representative of their typical configuration throughout the region. As described by Balfour, this weapon:
. . . consists of a short and very rigid bow, 25 1/2 inches across the arc, having a nearly rectangular section, stout at the center, and tapering towards the ends. The bow is not straight in the unstrung state, but has a set curve when free from strain. It is set symmetrically through a rectangular hole near the fore end of a slender wooden stock, measuring 50 3/4 inches in length, and is fixed with wedges. This stock is split laterally throughout the greater part of its length, so as to form an upper and lower limb, whose hinder ends are free and can be forced apart, while they remain united in the solid for [sic] end of the stock. When the two limbs are brought together, a square-sectioned peg fixed to the lower limb passes upward through the upper limb and completely fills up a notch situated on the upper surface behind the bowstring. The distance between the latter and the notch is 3 1/2 inches, and this represents the full extent of the draw. When drawn or set, the bowstring is held in the notch and the peg is forced downwards, causing the two limbs to separate. By bringing these together again, with a squeezing action, the peg as it rises in the notch forces out the bowstring, and in this very simple manner the release is effected (Balfour 1911:636-637).

Hi Katana,
Found no pictures, just some history... ;)

Newsletter of the African-American Archaeology Network
Notes On West African Crossbow Technology

http://www.diaspora.uiuc.edu/A-AAnew...sletter16.html

Hello, first pic of a Fang (Gabon) crossbow and the second from Kwele (Cameroon)

Hi Congoblades.. :) ...the link you posted, was the information which started this thread :p

Flavio, thanks, :) couldn't find any images on the web, they seem to be based on early European styled crossbows.
Would you know whether they were just for hunting.....or were they used in tribal conflict....or both.

Hello katana, i don't know if crossbows were used also in tribal conflict, but here is a picture of pygmy hunting with a crossbow from the book "Armi bianche dell'Africa nera".

Very interesting topic! and seldom mentioned in most general references.
Thank you Congoblades for linking and citing the resource where the information Katana excerpted was found. This is extremely important for subsequent research and responses to reduce duplicated efforts :)
Best regards,
Jim

Yes Jim.....I will be more careful to cite where the information came from in future. ;)

Thanks Katana, I learned that the hard way years ago from a very prominant museum director! Just wanted to keep us all on our toes :)
All the best,
Jim

What is the issue date of that book, Flavio?
One can read in the web that crossbows in Africa are still being used today, be it a fact or not.
Here is a link with pictures taken in year 2000, also by an Italian. The model looks similar. Monky hunting, in this case.
http://www.pygmies.info/gallery/023_en.html
kind regards
fernando

Hello Fernando, the publishing date of the book is 1992

Crossbow from Gabon or Cameroon
 

(Resurrecting this old thread as I haven’t found much discussion of these old bows in the forum.) Making an effort to post some crossbows from my collection for comment/reference. I’ve been collecting tribal crossbows for 20+ years, and I’ve noticed there’s been very little written about them. At best there are scattered references in ethnographic works and reviews of tribal archery (Grayson, “Traditional Archery from Six Continents”, Wiethase, “Arrows of the World”).

This is a complete, tribally used (possibly Fang) crossbow from Gabon or Cameroon. I do not have provenance but likely early 20th century.

Truly strange and unique weapons - the mechanism is a deep split in the wood stock combined with a small wood peg that pushes the bowstring out of a notch in the stock. A lump of wax or resin holds the small wood bolt on the top of the stock. (More of this material is present on the side of the muzzle.) Strong, square sectioned bow with deep bend. The wire holding the bow in place was probably added by a former owner.

In the past I had another African bow, possibly from a different region, with a different mechanism. That one had a hinged lever for a trigger made from the same material as the stock.

105 cm x 62 cm. Bow about 3 cm x 4 cm at middle. Pin nocks. Square cross section.

Also on the lookout for any good references on SEA archery and ethnographic crossbows!