Thought you guys may like this. Just got back from Egypt/Ethiopia trip. Stopped in Cairo Museum- unbelievable! 3000-4000 year old stuff from the era of Ramses/Pharaoh during Moses' time. This is a photo of bows! Hard to believe all the stuff preserved including taxidermy dogs, goats, etc.
(http://i106.photobucket.com/albums/m252/danrudman/IMG_0978_zpsed0bi4ix.jpg) (http://s106.photobucket.com/user/danrudman/media/IMG_0978_zpsed0bi4ix.jpg.html)
(http://i106.photobucket.com/albums/m252/danrudman/Egypt%20bows_zpsenrddbkx.jpg) (http://s106.photobucket.com/user/danrudman/media/Egypt%20bows_zpsenrddbkx.jpg.html)
Wow that is so cool!!!!!!
Thanks for sharing!
I see a couple of split limb bows in there..............and those compound guys were trying to lead us to believe they came up with that idea!!! :laughing: :laughing: :laughing:
Cool lookin' sticks!
Bisch
Actually some pretty nice looking bows and very decorative . What were they made from and what were the strings and arrows made from ? Thanks for sharing...
Wow ! Thanks for sharing . :goldtooth:
Did not have time to really inquire about details-it was a quick stop on a more serious trip. Though it was amazing what was preserved from 3000+ years ago. You will all laugh though. . . they even had a Pharaoh's contraceptive device! Crazy!!
Dan in KS
Man that is so cool, thanks for sharing.
That is so cool!
C :cool: : :cool: L!!!
They all seem to have string follow. Must have been well used in their day.
That's not string follow, it's reflex. Some of the Egyptian "angular" bows were composite with horn bellies and sinew backs and were wrapped with birch bark and other materials.
Cool stuff, KSdan. I love to look at ancient archery equipment.
QuoteOriginally posted by McDave:
They all seem to have string follow. Must have been well used in their day.
My hunch is that these were found in tombs or underground, and when they were placed there, they were strung up....a couple decades of centuries of being strung up will cause a bit of string follow. :)
Pretty cool to see. Thanks for sharing Dan.
QuoteOriginally posted by Pat B:
That's not string follow, it's reflex. Some of the Egyptian "angular" bows were composite with horn bellies and sinew backs and were wrapped with birch bark and other materials.
Here's a brief video I found about Egyptian composite bows.... PBS Nova (https://youtu.be/Xia09Ix-NJs)
Unstrung it looks like the pictures above.
These look familiar. (https://youtu.be/kXj-Gb8ptUQ?t=4m32s)
In the second video he is shooting Mediterranean style with split fingers and the arrow on the left side of the bow. Originally they used a thumb ring and shot off the right side of the bow giving a cleaner release and better, faster arrow flight.
This post has me thinking about books on archery history....anyone have any favorites or must-reads?
I'm currently gearing up for deer season with "On the Hunt: The History of Deer Hunting in Wisconsin" by Robert Willging.
Awesome. If those bows could talk...
Thanks for sharing the pictures from the Museum.
And thanks for the Nova Clip on making Egyptian composite bows.
Too awesome! They certainly dont look as primitive as one might expect. Seems they had it down pat.
That's amazing. They looked pretty elaborately decorated.
QuoteOriginally posted by KSdan:
Did not have time to really inquire about details-it was a quick stop on a more serious trip. Though it was amazing what was preserved from 3000+ years ago. You will all laugh though. . . they even had a Pharaoh's contraceptive device! Crazy!!
Dan in KS
Yeah, the golden condom is the only thing I remember clearly from my port visit and trip to the museum almost 30yrs ago! As a young sailor, that of all things made a big impression on me :bigsmyl:
I remember more about the three pyramids and sphinx, but nothing much clearly about the museum, I do remember being amazed by it though!
Very Cool video !!
Did those old guys tell the same kinds of hunting yarns we tell today? I bet they probably did. I bet they also bragged about how great their new bows looked. Those are great pics.
That's too cool!
It's amazing to see just what they were able to come up with!
Wow!! Thanks for sharing.
QuoteOriginally posted by Pat B:
That's not string follow, it's reflex. Some of the Egyptian "angular" bows were composite with horn bellies and sinew backs and were wrapped with birch bark and other materials.
Cool stuff, KSdan. I love to look at ancient archery equipment.
What he said. Strung they apeared to have straight limbs. A reflex/deflex composite bow.
Savvy folks them Egyptians.
(http://www.experience-ancient-egypt.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/Ancient-Egyptian-Weapons-Archery.jpg)
Wonder if they had spine calculators?
Interesting stuff for sure. I wonder when and how they tillered them? It would seem that it would have to be tillered before it was sinewed.
300 fps? :eek: Think I'd have to see it actually chronoed to believe that.
Just like with modern glass bows the engineering was done before hand.
James Parker(huntworthyproductions)has made many types of composite bows including these Egyptian angular bows. He had one at the Tenn. Classic this spring that I shot. They are amazing bows...like most of the composite horn bows.
There is a record of a Turkish(I think) prince that shot his composite bow over 900 yards...and this was a few thousand years ago.
Not String follow. they are most likely a Horn Composite bow, and they are in fabulous shape.
My Friend made an Egyptian Angular bow years ago, and it was fantastic.
A cool illustration of just how far back "Trad" goes! Thanks for posting.
Trad archery goes back 15,000 year and came about on every continent simultaneously except for Antarctica and Australia. Most of what is in archery today was thought up thousands of years ago. Only some of the materials are different.
Very cool!
I love history and I love archery. That is the coolest thing ever!!!! Love it!! Thanks Dan.
Thanks for sharing
Very cool!
Remarkable
Now that is something you will not see every day. Great post. Great trip. :thumbsup:
Thanks for sharing. I am fortunate to have been in that museum a few years ago. I really enjoyed my short time in Cairo.
Incredible
Thank you! Super interesting!
That's awesome! Archery goes far back in time. One of the oldest bows ever found was a flat bow discovered in Denmark some years back. It was dated back around 8000 years.