Primitive Archer
Main Discussion Area => Bows => Topic started by: WoodBenderDW on September 07, 2011, 03:07:01 am
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For my next bow, I plan on making the Cherokee hunting bow on page 76 in volume 2 of the traditional bowyer's bible. I'm hoping to make it out of hickory. Was this a common wood for the Cherokee people? Did they ever paint their bows? If so, what patterns did they use? Also what wood did they use for their arrows? What quivers did they use? Does anyone have or know where I can find a pattern for a Cherokee quiver? Any help from anyone is appreciated, but I am also the kind of enthusiastic dork that thinks that help from a real Cherokee would add some extra pride to my work. I think it really cool how the Cherokee have traditions going for this many hundreds of years. On a side note, I hope I don't offend anyone by saying that even though I'm a white man, I have a great deal of respect for the native ways of life and if we lived the way they did before we would all be alot better off. Happy shooting.
Dave
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yes hickory was a common wood used, i think blk locust and hackberry and elm to name a few(im sure some people that live back east tenn and nc would have better insight on native trees in that area were cherokee lived, i live in okla so osage has become my 1st choice) the bows that i have seen painted are simple stripe patterns not to fancy . legionaire posted a quiver made w/ rivercane not to long ago that would be perfect for eastern woodland type ,maybe he will chime in and post a link for it ;) i hope this helps a little cherokee style is my favorite design, i also have a little cherokee and creek blood ( hienz 57) good luck and there are alot of good bowyers on this sight that can help more than me just addin my 2 cents.
sa,
here are pics of a painted cherokee bow and cherokee basket quivers
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woodbender
Got some museum photo's for you, but the site keeps rejecting them for "security" reasons.....pm me your email and I'll send them to you. I've posted lots of Peabody Museum pics here before so dont know what the deal is....
rich
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Some people are having that problem, Rich since the site changed format.
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Try to find the book "Cherokee Bows" by Dr. Al Herrin. The gentleman is Cherokee and offers history and tradition along with instruction. I think you will find the book very interesting, entertaining and likely helpful to your build.
Mike
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I always thought cherokee bows were rather long, and d sectioned. Almost exactly like english longbows. The old pictures I have seen show usually longer bows, a mans height or higher? Is this wrong? Anybody know?
EDIT: Not d section I mean, but round. Just not flat. But I have also (just like everybody else seeing as how common it is) heard that cherokee bows were rectangular in cross section. Anybody know that old black and white print of the 3 cherokee men standing with those longbow - looking bows?
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upthcreek is that books full title "Cherokee Bows and Arrows: How to Make and Shoot primitive bows and arrows"?
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Mr Herrin also wrote a chapter about Native American bows in TBB 2 I believe. Jawge
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Hi there woodbender. Good luck with the bow, its a fine bow but it will have some handshock because its a bendy handle bow. Indeed Ive built a rivercane quiver as mentioned by sa and ill post the link below.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hso4p82XY5Y
Hope this helps out. if you have any questions PM me ill be happy to help.
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Cherokee bows come in two styles: Hunting bows, bend thru handel and shorter, then the war bow which is much more like an English longbow in length but lighter in draw weight. The war bow style is more prevelent in art and pictures and is still seen alot at the corn stalk shoots held today.
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You can still have those Styliezed tips, just whittle some of the excess wood off and you will get rid of a lot of that hand shock. I very seldom have hand shock in a Bendy handle bow, I also don't leave two pounds of wood on each end.
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Woodsrunner, thank you for clarifying that for me. Do you know if the cherokee warbow was rounded cross section wise, or rectangular by chance?
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toomanyknots- i believe they were rectangular in cross section , here are a few museum pics i saw on another site.
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Nice, thank you very much sa! Nice pictures! ;D ;D ;D
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Here's a corker for you, too. Any number of collected originals made from hickory were "aggressively de-crowned". In other words you couldn't tell them from one made from a 1x2 board from the lumberyard!!!
I love that asymetric nobbly thingy on the top limb of some of those, too! Pretty easy to carve, too.