Self bows in the eastern world???

[elijahjmhutchinson]

I have a historical-ish question for you guys? We only ever seem to hear about the composite bows used in the eastern world/ the mid-east and the eurasian steppe. I'm just curious if people there continued to build self bows even after the advent of the composite bow (which has of course been around since ancient times). It seems to me that composite  bows would be expensive and high maintenance for every tribesman on the steppe to have one, or for every Arab in the mid-east etc. Were composite bows just mass produced or more readily available? If there are any examples or styles of self bows in the east, what did they look like?

[bownarra]

There certainly would have been 'mass production' of hornbows going on. They lend themselves to being made that way. But of course selfbows and sinew backed wood bows would also have been common. Even 'mass produced' back in the day no hornbow would be 'cheap' .

[stuckinthemud]

There are records of bow type being seasonal in use in Chinese armies, with wood in Winter (I think) and wood/sinew and hornbow in the Summer as humidity levels and temperatures impacted on performance

[Pat B]

I would assume that selfbows came about before any other type of bows were invented. Bows came into existence all over the world, except Australia, at about the same time and not necessarily passed along from one culture to another. There is a scientific term for this phenomena but it escapes me now.

[sleek]

I wanna know who looked at a pile of dead animal parts and sticks, and said, "You know what, I think I can make a bow from this."

[Pat B]

I think his name was Og. 

[sleek]

I think his name was Og. 

Haha... personal friend of yours Pat?