[Time] Kenyan Tribes Wage a War With Bows and Arrows

Tim Simmons · 15th October 2009, 04:59 PM

Rather scary.

Atlantia · 15th October 2009, 05:51 PM

Looks to me like something that should be sorted out by chasing a rolling cheese downhill then getting pissed afterwards.

fearn · 15th October 2009, 07:58 PM

Better than doing it with AK-47s or shotguns, is my vote.

On a straight-up ethnographic weapons note, did any of you notice that we have (apparently) a new type of bow here?

That first picture shows bows with short, stiff staves--perhaps one was originally a chair leg? The spring power comes from the springs (!) attached to the bowstring. Not all the bows have that, and I'll be that's why the arrow embedded in someone's cheek instead of going all the way through. Short bows like they've made probably aren't pulling more than 10-20 pounds, and a 50 pound pull is the legal minimum for hunting deer in the US.

Still, that re-purposing of springs (from a car?) to power a bow is a new one on me.

Very interesting, at least technically.

Best,

F

KuKulzA28 · 16th October 2009, 02:40 AM

War is war... beautiful and deadly...

I notice a lot of the stuff seems made from scrapped materials.. for example arrowheads made from nails... the Atayal tribe in Taiwan still makes arrowheads this way... but it's more for show, preserving old ways, and the occasional hunting and fishing trip.... and the practice of recycling truck springs for blades... etc.etc.

I wonder when they say that the bow was only used for hunting... and that it was found to be a more deadly than the machete... Does that mean that the traditional spear-based warfare shifted to machetes (when Imperialistic powers made those widely available) only become a bow-based fighting style?

fearn · 16th October 2009, 03:51 AM

Hi KuKulz,

Thing about machetes is that, unless they're really sharp, they can be stopped by thick cloth, such as these guys are wearing. None of these weapons are terribly deadly, and I suspect that they're less deadly than the old spears and seme were. Still, it is combat.

Best,

F

Andrew · 16th October 2009, 01:19 PM

Interesting stuff. Let's stay away from the inevitable socio-political discussion and focus on the weapons. If we get thread-drift into other areas, I will have to lock this one.

fearn · 16th October 2009, 02:42 PM

Happy to, Andrew.

A couple more weapons observations, though.

One is that we seldom talk about African slings, but there is apparently a picture of a maasai slinger (8th down). Anyone know how widespread slings are in that part of the world?

Another is that there is increasing use of recycled and repurposed materials, for lots of socio-political reasons I won't go into here

. However, it's new area for weapons collectors, and it's going to be interesting for us in the future, because weapons that are made in Africa may increasingly be put together from pieces from elsewhere. Distinguishing these from similar recycled-built weapons elsewhere in the world will be an interesting area of new study.

Best,

F

15th October 2009, 04:59 PM	#1
Tim Simmons Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: What is still UK Posts: 5,855	Rather scary.

15th October 2009, 05:51 PM	#2
Atlantia Member Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: The Sharp end Posts: 2,928	Looks to me like something that should be sorted out by chasing a rolling cheese downhill then getting pissed afterwards.

15th October 2009, 07:58 PM	#3
fearn Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Posts: 1,247	Better than doing it with AK-47s or shotguns, is my vote. On a straight-up ethnographic weapons note, did any of you notice that we have (apparently) a new type of bow here? That first picture shows bows with short, stiff staves--perhaps one was originally a chair leg? The spring power comes from the springs (!) attached to the bowstring. Not all the bows have that, and I'll be that's why the arrow embedded in someone's cheek instead of going all the way through. Short bows like they've made probably aren't pulling more than 10-20 pounds, and a 50 pound pull is the legal minimum for hunting deer in the US. Still, that re-purposing of springs (from a car?) to power a bow is a new one on me. Very interesting, at least technically. Best, F

16th October 2009, 02:40 AM	#4
KuKulzA28 Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: between work and sleep Posts: 731	War is war... beautiful and deadly... I notice a lot of the stuff seems made from scrapped materials.. for example arrowheads made from nails... the Atayal tribe in Taiwan still makes arrowheads this way... but it's more for show, preserving old ways, and the occasional hunting and fishing trip.... and the practice of recycling truck springs for blades... etc.etc. I wonder when they say that the bow was only used for hunting... and that it was found to be a more deadly than the machete... Does that mean that the traditional spear-based warfare shifted to machetes (when Imperialistic powers made those widely available) only become a bow-based fighting style?

16th October 2009, 03:51 AM	#5
fearn Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Posts: 1,247	Hi KuKulz, Thing about machetes is that, unless they're really sharp, they can be stopped by thick cloth, such as these guys are wearing. None of these weapons are terribly deadly, and I suspect that they're less deadly than the old spears and seme were. Still, it is combat. Best, F

16th October 2009, 01:19 PM	#6
Andrew Member Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: USA Posts: 1,725	Interesting stuff. Let's stay away from the inevitable socio-political discussion and focus on the weapons. If we get thread-drift into other areas, I will have to lock this one.

16th October 2009, 02:42 PM	#7
fearn Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Posts: 1,247	Happy to, Andrew. A couple more weapons observations, though. One is that we seldom talk about African slings, but there is apparently a picture of a maasai slinger (8th down). Anyone know how widespread slings are in that part of the world? Another is that there is increasing use of recycled and repurposed materials, for lots of socio-political reasons I won't go into here . However, it's new area for weapons collectors, and it's going to be interesting for us in the future, because weapons that are made in Africa may increasingly be put together from pieces from elsewhere. Distinguishing these from similar recycled-built weapons elsewhere in the world will be an interesting area of new study. Best, F