Composite Bow
Specifications
- Type
- Ranged Weapon
- Origin
- Central Asian Steppe
- Era
- c. 2000 BCE
- Notable Users
- Mongol horse archers, Huns, Scythians, Ottoman Turks
- Epoch
- Ancient Age
History
The composite bow is a marvel of ancient engineering. Constructed from layers of wood, horn, and sinew laminated together with animal glue, it stores far more energy per unit of length than a simple wooden bow. This compact power made it ideal for mounted archery — steppe nomads could shoot accurately from horseback at full gallop. The Mongol composite bow had a draw weight of 100 to 160 pounds and an effective range exceeding 300 meters. It was the weapon that built the largest contiguous land empire in history.
Significance
The composite bow is why steppe nomads terrified settled civilizations for two thousand years. Mongols, Huns, Scythians, Turks: the list of empires built on horseback archery is long. No pre-industrial weapon packed more lethality into a smaller package.
54 Weapons. Five Epochs. One Poster.
The Composite Bow is one of 9 weapons from the Ancient Age featured on the poster.
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