Re: Bows in Horses Tribes

From: bethexton <bethexton_at_...>
Date: Tue, 13 Aug 2002 13:09:31 -0000

A quick point that the natives of the North American plains didn't have horses for all that long before they were driven off their lands, so they may well not have come upon all the optimum technilogical, tactical, and strategic solutions to horse archery. They are probably a good model for people like the Pol Joni who haven't had the lifestyle for all that long, but may not be the best for the long established nomads. FWIW, I seem to recall that the most sophisticated bows in the americas were actually made by the inuit!

--Bryan

left-handed Indians became
> shamans or learned to shoot right-handed I guess. You CAN shoot
over
> to the 'wrong' side, but you can't draw to full length and keep
your
> normal draw position.
>
> > Most horses riders like american indians use a *short* bow,
because
> > of the neck of their horse, but great nomads of east-europe and
> > asia use a third-handle bow. Their armies are bow-based warriors,
> > in this condition, their bow need long and strong shots.
>
> This is also to stop the string fouling their own feet/knees, and
> such bows were usually composites, so much stronger than a wooden
bow
> of the same size - strong enough to kill Bison anyway! As I mention
> above, actually crossing over the horse's neck is a fair task for a
> contortionist.
>
> Wulf

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