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Originally Posted by Gonzalo G
From the representation of Mongol and Manchu mounted warriors, I believed these bows were smaller to facilitate shooting from horseback. 1.70-1.80 mt is about the size of a English longbow, isn't it? I canīt imagine carrying those long bows from a quiver suspended from the waist.
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Some photos of large bows being worn on horseback at
http://www.manchuarchery.org/photogr...golian-archers (and when you combine it with the long heavy arrows you want for these bow, a musket, a sword, and a lance, you have a lot of stuff to carry).
Smaller is easier on horseback, but note that the bow survived for so long in the Qing army as a cavalry weapon. After pike and musket became the dominant infantry weapons, the bow remained in use by the cavalry for another 200 years. If they'd adopted the pistol as a standard cavalry weapon, the bow might have been abandoned.
The Japanese managed with an even longer bow! (Modern yumi usually vary from 2.2m to 2.5m.)
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Originally Posted by Gonzalo G
Do you mean, among the Timurids?
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Timurids, and also others nearby in space and time. I double-checked Timurids specifically, but it reflects much broader usage. The Central Asian standard sword suspension was edge down, hung from the belt, two hangers on the spine-side of the scabbard.