Archery has been the part of human civilization since ages; in fact archery was extensively used in wars and for hunting. Ancient civilizations like Egyptian, Indian, Greek and Persian boasts of great archers. These archers are still remembered and revered.
Bows and arrows are the main constituents of archery. Studies have shown that the bows were developed in either early Mesolithic age or late Paleolithic age. Pines were used for making arrows.
Bows are an indispensable part of archery. It helps an archer in properly aiming at the target and shooting the arrow. If the bows are not proper then the archer will face difficulties in mounting the arrow. If the arrows are not properly mounted then the archer won’t be able to properly shoot the target.
The archery bows commonly used are: longbow, shortbow, flatbow, recurve bow, crossbow and compound bow. Longbow as the name suggests is very long; the length of the bow is equal to the height of the user and in some cases even exceeds the height of the user. The limb of the Flatbow is wider and the cross-section is rectangular in shape.
Shortbow is shorter in length; it is light weight and has a short range. It was basically used for hunting purpose. In crossbow the limbs are mounted in a horizontal manner and not in a vertical manner. The compound bow is designed in such as manner that the archer is at his ease while mounting the bow.
The arrow which is used along with the bow should also be made up of proper material and should be properly designed. The shaft used for making arrow should be of good material. The arrowhead which is at the front portion of the arrow directly points and hit the target. These arrowheads which are made of metals or some other materials are used to target points.
In order to properly shoot an arrow the archer has to maintain the correct stance. The posture of the body, the eye and the way the archer is holding the bow should be in line.
Sight shooting and instinctive shooting are the two methods adopted by an archer while shooting an arrow. In instinctive shooting the archer has to completely concentrate on the target while shooting the arrow. It requires a lot of practice.
Where as in case of sight shooting the archer can adjust the pins which are there on the bows to target an object, his is relatively easy. Previously instinctive shooting was the norm but at present sight shooting is more preferred.
The firearms displaced archery as it had many advantages over bows and arrows. They had long range, they were more lethal, using them did not require lots of training and no major skill was required to use this weapons.
Today archery has become a sporting activity; some even use it for recreational purposes. In sports too the archery bows used are different but there are set of guidelines provided by International Archery Federation regarding archery bows. Proper knowledge of archery bows and archery arrows will have those desirous of learning archery.