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Old 28th March 2013, 10:22 PM   #18
fearn
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Join Date: Dec 2004
Posts: 1,247
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Quote:
Originally Posted by thinreadline
Here are some bows and some arrows from my 'heap' . Dont know their geographical origin but would welcome comments .

BOW 1 shaped hardwood stave length 160 cm , max width 5 cm , bamboo 'string'.
BOW 2 shaped hardwood stave length 190 cm , max width 4 cm , bamboo 'string' incised decoration at one end.
BOW 3 'natural' branch hardwood stave with only minimal working , 145 cm long, 3cm wide max, plaited leather 'string' , grip covered with leopard skin.

The 5 arrows all have bamboo shafts and vary between 105 - 170 cm in length ... all have separately fashioned 'heads' apparently of hardwood.
The arrows are not necessarily associated with the bows . The bows appear to be quite old whereas the arrows to my untrained eye look much more recent . I have owned all of them for over 20 years and they came from a house clearance in a North Wales village.
I'm guessing here, but the first two bows look like they are from Papua New Guinea, while the third bow is more likely from Africa. If the strings on the first two bows are flat, rather than round, that increases the chance, while the leather string on the third one tends to signal Africa to me.

As for the arrows, I'm leaning towards Papuan for those as well, particularly due to the lack of flights and the apparent lack of an arrow nock at the butt. These go with the flat strings.

Best,

F
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