Eastern Woodland bow pictures library

[SLIMBOB]

Been on this thread nearly from the beginning.  Thanks for all the work on this Rich!

[half eye]

OK boys and girls....here is some firstclass eye-candy.

Bow is located at the Musee McCord, collected by David Ross McCord his own self. It is 62.5 inches by 2 inches (5.1cm X 158.5cm) The bow is listed as anonymous but if you click on the more info it is declared by McCord as belonging to the Shawnee Warrior Tecumseh, killed at the Moraviantown fight 1813. He bases that on the people he got it from, the style in which it was carved, shape of the string knocks, and the engraved (incised carving) iconography. It is for sure Shawnee. Enjoy the pics

[half eye]

Thanks slimbob

[Josh B]

Holy smokes Rich!  The entire thread is a treasure trove of wonder and inspiration, but Tecumseh's bow was truly the creme de la creme!  Thank you for sharing some of the fruits of your research.   josh

[Buckeye Guy]

Rich
would you mind emailing the pics of the Tecumseh bow to me?
was it 2inches at the handle  or at the widest  part?
I would like to see it reproduced , that would be a fun project.

[half eye]

no problem bud....send me a email   rousseau.rd@att.net   and I believe I fire 'em off. I believe that the width measurement to be widest point, thats how it's done on the scalloped bows.
rich

Thanks Josh hope it helps everybody, with the talent around this place this ought to be REAL GOOD

[Badly Bent]

That an elaborate bow there. Rich do you know if the designs are on the back or belly? are they incised or painted on?  Also do you think this bow was shot or was it a presentation or ceremonial work?

[Badly Bent]

Whoops I didn't read well the first time around, I see now where you noted that the designs are incised.

[loefflerchuck]

Good lord that's a fancy bow!

[half eye]

Hey Greg,
      Got to belive this bow was not used as a bow, maybe a status symbol. The reason I say that is because in the later years of Tecumseh  fireams were the predominate weapon of choice. There is a recount in the oral history of the Odawa (who were present when he was killed) that he was shot through the thigh bone and the last they hear him say was .....they shot off my leg so leave a loaded gun so I can have one more shot, and they said the last they could see him was surrounded by American troops.
    That and the fact that he was  most often reffered to as "techumseh the great warrior" so I believe he would have "status" symbols or badges of some kind. It's also in really good condition.
    That is all guess work, but the bow does not look like a everyday tool......but hey who knows for sure,
rich

[Jodocus]

what a wealth of knowledge! Thank you so much!

[GlisGlis]

Thankyou for the pictures. All splendid bow.
So far Geronimo's bow is my favorite. Such a beauty!!

[lebhuntfish]

I forgot to mention that the Geronimo bow has a carving on the back of the bow. If you look closely in the last pic I posted you can see it. It looks kinda like a continuous infinity sign down the back.

Sorry, those are the best picture's I could get because of the lighting. Patrick

[half eye]

Here are a few more....all are Seminole (south eastern) but notice that they look just like the eastern woodland so thought I'd post "em up. Museum of Narural History

Heres the particulars:
50.1/2343     71-1/2" X 1.57"
    /2344        57-7/8" X 1.57"
    /2345        15-1/2" X 3/4" (listed as a toy but has been used and might be a "learning bow" Kid
50.1/2347 c-f   arrows longest is 41" and the shortest is 35" w/ closeup of the heads

notice they are rectangular section, single curve, and have diamond fineals.
rich

[half eye]

here are a few more southeast bows, also from the American Museum of Natural History

NOTE:  these pics are pretty small but if you go to  www.amnh.org/anthropology/collectsions/database     you can access by the catalog number and they have a zoom feature.....sorry I dont know how to post a direct link.

first bow is Choctaw   65-3/4 X 1.5"  number  50.2/6342
second is Catawaba (the last is the arrow shafts (cane)  this bow is 48-3/8" X 1-3/4" and has "keystone" shaped fineals

all the bows are plain, rectangular section