Plains Indian LEATHER BOW & ARROW SET 1547
Buckskin leather covered with needle work, feathers, beads and braided leather. The arrow is wrapped with sinew (artifical) and has a carved obsidian tip. A magnificant show piece for your collectible wall. The bow is 46" across. Used in ceremonies to connect the warrior to his spirit guides. Rituals may focus on enhancing power, strength, healing, wisdom, intuition, on life's journey. Art symbolizing the connection to the spirit world. A reproduced artifact from yester year. It was made just down the street from our trading post by some good friends of Richard's. Some of the artists can be seen in the photos.
Details:
(1) Beads:--------To honor the earth mother
(2) Feathers:---- Spiritual communication
(3) 46" long,
Indian warriors gained status not only from their success from battle, but also their skills in crafting weapons. The wood for Bow and Arrows is cut during the winter when the sap is down and goes through a curing process where it is hung up to dry. Typically Bow woods used are Ash, Black Locust, Black Cherry, Osage Orange, White Oak and Hickory. Arrows were made mostly from dogwood, yaupon holly, witch hazel and willow because they could be smoothed and straighten easily. Arrow points made of noviculite and obsidian are chipped with a moose and deer antler. Youths learned that turkey or buzzard feathers made better arrow fletching than hawk or eagle feathers because the later were more easily ruined by blood. Weapons gain spiritual potency from the divine power of the natural materials from which they are made, such as attaching a bears jaw bone to a metal blade to tap into the bear's super natural might. Some bows and arrows displayed are intended for wall decoration. Other bows and arrows are functional. Bows became smaller -as short as two and a feet in some cases, as the need for weapons that could easily be carried on horseback increased. A few western tribes were able to craft good bows from the horns of elk and bighorn sheep. Smaller bow packed less power, warriors compensated by using them at closer range and firing faster. Claims of such skills were often exaggerated, but Cheyenne braves were said to be able to unleash six arrows in such rapid order that all would be in flight before the first arrow struck its target. The Western Apache used potent toxin made from deer's spleen and various roots and plants. |