Composite Turkish Bow; Ottoman Dynasty Period

Turkish Composite Bow (Katışık Türk Yay); Length 60 cm, Weight 274 g. Decorated with gilded and lacquered floral motifs. The Turkish bow is a recurved, composite bow made from horn, wood and sinew glued together. Turkish archers shot with thumb releases. A thumb-ring was worn to protect the thumb and aid the draw. Depending on the quality of the bow, it took up to ten years to manufacture the weapon, with individual layers of wood, buffalo horn, and sinew (tendon) glued together with fish glue. Each of these operations required extensive drying times, resulting in the long manufacturing time. With these composite bows, the Turks shot up to 800 meters.