The Archer's Edge: History and Heritage of Archery

Archery is more than just a sport, a spot and stalk hunt, or a weekend hobby It's a passion. Over the next 16 weeks I want to take you through some tips, tricks and fun facts to best your archery knowledge and skills to get you ready for the thrill of a lifetime.

Archery has been debated to date back to the Stone Age around 20,000BC but the earliest archeological finds were in Egypt around 5,000 years ago. The Egyptians used archery for hunting and warfare. The first bows were made by joining antelope horns with a piece of wood in the center. Strings were made from animal sinew or plant fibers and the arrows were shaped of reed and tipped with flint or hardwood. Later in time the tips were cast of bronze. These ancient bows demanded strength, agility and years of practice.

China has a long history of archery dating back to the Shang Dynasty from 1766BC through the modern age. Archery was used in war with mounted soldiers as well as by nobles in archery rituals and tournaments. Even Confucius himself was an archery teacher who said A refined person has no use for competitiveness. Yet if he cannot avoid it, then let him compete through archery.

Japan took archery ideas from China and turned them into a physical, moral and spiritual development segment of martial arts. It was originally known as Kyujutsu but is now referred to as Kyudo. These practices are meticulous in form and style. Archers hold the bow in the left and hand and draw the string with the right in order to always have their left side facing the target. There are eight stages of shooting' that are arranged by the All Nippon Kyudo Federation. The final stage is Zanshin, the remaining body or mind or the continuation of the shot. This refers to the state of concentration used by the archer during his practice and ensuring he remains in position until completion of the shot.

In modern times archery has been taken up as more of a sport or for hunting. The first organized archery tournament was recorded in Finsbury, England in 1583. It included over 3,000 participants. Archery has been a recognized sport at the Olympics since 1900 and the Paralympics since 1960. The recurve bow is the only bow allowed to be used in the Olympics.