Hornbow Crossbow

Title

Hornbow Crossbow

HCA Identifier

W 59/2022

Collection Location

Deutsches Historisches Museum (German Historical Museum), Berlin, Germany

Date

Second half of the 15th century

Location

Central Europe

Description

The horn-bow crossbow has a straight, slender stock; the
wood is stained black or painted. It is fully boned at the top,
and the bow chamber is covered with two tapered
plates arranged on either side. Part of the bone inlay in front of the fork rivet is
broken off. On the underside at the front and around the trigger bar,
a lancet-shaped bone plate adorns the stock. The
end of the stock has a small cheek piece on the left side.
A single-axis nut lock with a nut running on
the thread is embedded in the stock. The nut itself has
a steel insert, a replaced center piece, and
a reinforcing rivet. The trigger bar is equipped with a horn spring. It is angular at the base and tapers to a
round shape toward the rear; an illegible mark is stamped on the left side of the knee. The bolt holder, made of dark horn, is broken off.
The binding secures the bow, including the suspension ring, to
the column. It is made of brown hemp and is frayed in places. Dried-up remnants of the impregnation are still present.
The horn-layered bow with a D-shaped cross-section is surrounded by
a partially peeling layer of printed birch bark. A
dot pattern adorns the bow’s belly; the dots are arranged in rows of three in a zigzag pattern on a dark background. The nocks are constructed in the usual manner with two string rests.
The string, with knotted loops and dark impregnation, hangs loosely from the bow. The bowstring, with knotted loops and dark impregnation, hangs loosely from the bow. Its loops are protected by a wrapping of two-millimeter-thick thread; the same material was also used for the nock string.

Source

Lüken, Sven, Jens Sensfelder, and Felix Jäger. Die Armbrust Schrecken und Schönheit . München: Hirmer, 2019.

Crossbow Top Measurements

Prod length(Gesampte Sehnenlange): 655 mm
String length: approx. 560 mm
Center cross-section of the prod: 60 mm x 45 mm
Outer cross-section of the prod: 44 mm x 36 mm
String diameter: 16 mm (S) / 1 mm (Z)
Total length of the crossbow: 733 mm
Stock length: 661 mm
Length of bow to lock: 224 mm
Stock cross-section at the bow: 67 mm x 32 mm
Stock cross-section at the lock: 51 mm x 55 mm
Stock cross-section at the butt: 31 mm x 21.5 mm
Nut diameter x width: 39 mm x 32 mm
Width of lock parts: 9 mm
Binding thread diameter: 5 mm (S)/1 mm (Z)
Weight: 2.68 kg