Traditional Archery

Due to its composite structure, the process of constructing Turkish bows requires an advanced knowledge of technique and materials. The aim of this study is to analyze the methods of constructing ancient bows and the physical properties of the materials that are used in the process. Since it is not possible to study ancient bows due to the possible risk of damaging the connecting surfaces within its layers, Computed Tomography is used for scanning the bows. The technical details of the combination of sinew, wood and hom, as well as the form and density of the materials are viewed elaborately using this method. By using tomography, valuable knowledge can be gained about the construction techniques of the ancient bows. We believe that the bows made with consideration of this information and technique will show higher performances in the future. As a result, CT tomography is very useful method for understanding of ancient bow and shows new horizons for contemporary bow makers.

Talk given in Spanish at Complutense University, History department, Madrid for "De fuste e de Fierro". Armamento medieval en la Peninsula Iberica. IV International Seminar. 9-10th March, 2020 (for English translation see Archery CV  https://www.academia.edu/42644287  ) . The talk deals with use of the bow in Al-Andalus as a favored military weapon since its beginning in 711 to its demise in 1492 and by contrast its apparent absence in the northern states that confront it. Discussed are the two types of bows mentioned in an Arabic chronical reference and delves on the possible historical origin of what the sources call the 'Arab bow'. It touches also on the apparent ‘sacralization’ of the bow in the general Islamic context. Its appearance in the few pictorial references in Al-Andalus and discussed are the two very different types that appear in them. Also discussed is their relative effectiveness, construction, and the materials used and their specific differences. All this in contrast to the apparent lack of the use of the bow as a military weapon in the Christian states that were slowly formed at the north of the Iberian Peninsula. This could in part be due, it is argued, to a profound atavistic ideological rejection of the said weapon as being that of ‘the other’. The very negative ideological view of the bow is reflected and materialized in the art of the Christian north as can clearly be see in the Romanesque art of the Iberia Peninsula.

L’ Archery Combat è oggi una manifestazione ArcoUISP che deriva dalla pratica consolidata in USA e Oriente (soprattutto Corea e Giappone) dell’Archery TAG e altre forme con varianti più o meno sostanziali, in vigore da almeno 15 anni. In sostanza è
un confronto tra arcieri (dotati di protezioni, archi di basso libbraggio e frecce con la punta di soffice gomma) che si tirano addosso, con uno o più arbitri che giudicano l’efficacia dei colpi. Metaforicamente dopo un certo numero di ’ferimenti’ si "muore" e si esce dallo scontro.

For “Choking under pressure” one means the stress situations that affect many experienced  athletes in different sports, leading them to in unexpected failures. In this paper,  I compare the archery’s cases to more texted episodes in other individual sports,  like golf, and to an-cient manuals of archery or other martial arts. Conclusions lead to consider the notorious archery’s phenomenon of “Target Panic”
as a kind of “Choking under pressure

Antefatti Nel 1987, con il primo storico corso per istruttori FIARC tenutosi a Milano subito dopo la formalizzazione della prima commissione istruzione, iniziarono a volare parole grosse, naturalmente su questo argomento. In quella sessione giunsero una settantina di arcieri, dei quali almeno la metà "vecchie volpi", sicuramente persone con maggiore esperienza e notorietà del sottoscritto che si trovava sulla cat-tedra. Quando si affrontò l'argomento degli impatti delle frecce sul bersaglio in funzione della rigidità dell'asta ci fu la sommossa (ma non si discusse affatto la definizione di "spine"!). Morbida a destra e rigida a sinistra. Il settanta per cento sosteneva (o credeva di poterlo sostenere perché l'aveva letto su manuali FITA) questa versione. Il trenta per cento circa se ne rimase zitta, poi, arrossendo, ammise che a loro succedeva l'incontrario. Ebbene, anche a me accadeva lo stesso, ed ero pronto a difendere con le unghie la mia convinzione. Certo è che presi atto di questa dicotomia. Salomonicamente provai a convincere l'uditorio che "potevano verificarsi entrambe le situazioni" senza però darne alcuna giustificazione, ripromettendomi di sperimentarci sopra. Semplicemente, notai come la totalità degli arcieri con il rest (compound) e una parte dei tradizionali con il tappetino sostenessero l'opposto delle mie percezioni.

An arrowhead was found in an archaeologically dated late thirteenth-century context in the deserted medieval village of Gomeldon, Wiltshire, England. An arrow with a replica of the head was shot against simulated padded armour and against mail. The Gomeldon arrowhead was more effective than a bodkin point at penetrating a padded gambeson but less effective at penetrating mail.

O Longbow (arco longo), definição dada por ter mais de 1,20m (4 pés), foi provavelmente usado em primeiro lugar pelos povos Germanos ou Escandinavos pelos anos 500DC.
Por volta de 1000DC era usado em Gales, mas desconhece-se se foi aí desenvolvido independentemente ou se veio das partes da Europa citadas.

The armed forces that Athens took into the Peloponnesian War had four distinct corps. The two that have been studied the most are the cavalry-corps and the navy. The same level of focus is now paid to the hoplite corps. In contrast to these three branches the archers continue to be largely unstudied. Indeed the last dedicated study of this corps was published in 1913. This neglect of the archers by military historians is unjustified. The creation of the archer corps in the late 480s was a significant military innovation. For the rest of the fifth century Athens constantly deployed archers in a wide range of important combat-roles. In the late 430s the state spent just as much on them as it did on the cavalry. Nevertheless this neglect explains why four problems about them remain unresolved. The first problem is why the Athenians took the unprecedented step of creating such a corps. Very few military historians recognise this as the problem that it is. The second problem is that many military archers were actually Athenian citizens. It is likely that poverty had ruled out their service as hoplites. But this leaves unexplained why they did not chose the navy, because naval service was cheaper still and earned, as we shall see, a lot more esteem. The third problem is the role that the ten tribes played in the archer corps’s organisation. Certainly horsemen and hoplites fought in tribal units. But there is ongoing debate about whether the rest of the armed forces was organised by tribes. The fourth problem is this branch’s disappearance after only 80 years. A. Plassart attempted to explain it more than a hundred years ago. Since his study epigraphy has hugely increased what we know about this branch. This new evidence shows that Plassart’s explanation is no longer valid. This article’s main goal is to resolve these four problems. In doing so it seeks to redress the archer corps’s neglect in military history.

Thèse de doctorat, 2016-2019, sous la direction de P.Y. Beaurepaire
En attente de publication.

A partir du XVIIe siècle, l'Europe connait une "révolution associative" majeure, où de nouveaux espaces de convivialité et de sociabilité restreinte émergent. Les associations créées s'organisent autour des loisirs préférés des participants : académies, clubs, loges maçonniques.

C'est durant cette période qu’apparaît également, dans le milieu urbain, une forme de sociabilité méconnue : les compagnies privilégiées de la milice bourgeoise.

Choisissant de s'exercer à un "noble jeu" -- l'arc, l'arbalète et l'arquebuse sont les jeux plus exercés mais nous trouvons également ceux de la couleuvrine, du canon, de l'épée, du pistolet ou encore de la navigation --, ces institutions s'affilient à l'histoire des anciennes confréries militaires des villes, nées au Moyen-Age des libertés urbaines et de l'obligation de se défendre par ses propres moyens.

Trouvant une place particulière au sein des milices bourgeoises, ces compagnies sont privilégiées par de nombreuses patentes et finissent par se distinguer des compagnies ordinaires de la milice urbaine sur lesquelles elles exigent le pas. Nous les retrouvons sur une grande partie du royaume de France, sans tenir compte de la hiérarchie urbaine.

[...]

Presentamos a continuación la traducción al castellano del artículo original de Ki-Hoom Kim, publicado el 25 de octubre de 2003. Los estudios coreanos sobre la arquería tradicional, han avanzado a pasos agigantados en los últimos años, sin contar con la celebrada y mantenida pasión por la arquería en la cultura coreana. A diferencia del caso chino, en el que la inclusión de elementos nómadas para la confección del arco es más segmentada y espaciada a lo largo de los siglos, en el caso coreano siempre ha existido una continuada influencia e innovaciones en el campo de la arquería, hasta el nivel de erigirse por sí misma, como uno de los países con mejor tradición arquera en el campo de los arcos compuestos. Una arquería vital, como veremos a lo largo del artículo, para entender el complejo universo y desarrollo de la arquería de tradición y tipología "compuesta".

We present below the translation into Spanish of the original article by Ki-Hoom Kim, published on October 25, 2003. Korean studies on traditional archery have advanced by leaps and bounds in recent years, not to mention the celebrated and maintained passion By archery in Korean culture. Unlike the Chinese case, in which the inclusion of nomadic elements for the making of the bow is more segmented and spaced over the centuries, in the Korean case there has always been a continued influence and innovations in the field of archery, To the level of erecting itself, as one of the countries with the best arquera tradition in the field of composite bows. A vital arcade, as we will see throughout the article, to understand the complex universe and development of archery tradition and "composite" typology.

In Cina l'arco non era soltanto un'arma temibile ma rivestiva la massima importanza sia nelle cerimonie religiose che in quelle sociali. Pochi sanno però che, fin dal suo apparire, è sempre stato anche un mezzo per l'identificazione e la distinzione di un popolo o di un gruppo. La modifica del design infatti è quasi sempre da attribuire a fattori d'esclusività piu' che a una serie di perfezionamenti tecnici per potenziare l'arma. Le invasioni mongola dapprima (dinastia Yuan) e poi quella mancese (con l'ultima dinastia Qing) hanno sempre cercato di modificare o meglio di imporre i propri metodi costruttivi proprio perchè l'arco era visto non solo come l'arma più importante ma anche come il simbolo che con la sua forma e sistema costruttivo rappresentava chiaramente la loro stirpe, a tal punto che l'ultima dinastia (Qing) ordino' di bruciare quanti piu' archi si trovassero della dinastia precedente (Ming) imponenedo il proprio stile arcieristico e il proprio. design e questo è il motivo per cui molti oggi commettono l'errore di considerare " arco cinese''solo quello in stile Qing (mancese).

Knightly Weaponry Play - the Manual of Fencing and Archery for German Scouting

This is an instructional manual for the basic, fun, and clever wielding by youth of longsword, single stick, bow & arrow, and crossbow & bolt.  Published in Germany in 1935 as Ritterliche Waffenspiele (Knightly Weaponry Play), this second edition book was originally written by a patriotic forester, naturalist, and Scouting leader, Herr-Doktor Wilhelm Fabricius, who along with his faithful wife, Frau Anna Schweickhardt, worked to inspire their nation’s various juvenile environmental-survival fellowships & brotherhoods like Deutsche Freischar, Wandervögel, Deutsche Jungenschaft, Adler und Falken, Deutsches Jungvolk, Bündische Jugend, Pfadfinder (German Volunteers, Wandering Birds, German Youngship, Eagle and Falcons, German Youngfolk, League of Youth, Path-Finders = Scouts).  This little field manual, now exceedingly rare, was the combined 23rd/24th final volume of the once-popular series of the chocolate-bar-sized Scouting Rucksack-Bücherei (rucksack-library), codicologically remarkable for their finely wrought pictures and bold yet delicate fonts, plus archival quality paper and sturdy bindings.

Fabricius evidently wanted the German youth of his day to learn something of the noble and manly arts of combat pursued by Medieval German Ritter (knights).  Indeed, his book’s swordplay clearly interprets moves of Kunst des Fechtens (art of fencing/fighting) as illustrated centuries earlier by venerable Fechtmeister (fencing/fight-masters) like Hans Talhoffer (1467) and Joachim Meyer (1570 & 1600), and a probable Fechter & Ringer (fencer & wrestler) like Albrecht Dürer (1512).  All such were constituents of the array of martial arts correctly known as Ritterlich Kunst (Knightly/Chivalric Arts).  Howsoever imperfect his interpretation of those past teachings might be, Fabricius made up for it by his motivational vitality.

The goal of this book is juvenile martial prowess, which is the organic outcome of suprarational self-worth and historical curiosity leading to autodidactic achievement.  Training at such positive athletic activities makes for a higher quality citizen.  These were specifically intended, along with a kaleidoscopic variety of other worthwhile activities, to help the Scouts make themselves from boys into men for the benefit of, and to the credit of, their Volksgemeinschaft (ethnic community: i.e. Germany = nation, people, culture).  That said, weaponry play—with some vigorous wrestling along the way—simply makes for great joy!

By the early months of 1371, the Fletchers of the City of London had split from the Bowyers to form a Company of their own. This new history, commissioned by the Company as part of the celebrations to mark the 650th anniversary of its independence, and based on extensive archival research, traces the Fletchers’ fortunes in the first two centuries of their existence. It explores the Company’s early communal activities, its role in the life of the City, and for the first time throws light on the lives of some of its early members who included even at this early date a notable number of women fletchers. An Appendix provides the texts and translations of the Company’s early ordinances up to 1592.

An examination and critical edition of an early 17th-century Ottoman work on horsemanship, mounted archery and related cavalry exercises. This work written by Ser-silâhşörân-ı Osmâniyân Mustafa Ağa el-Müteferrika (a.k.a. Kapuağası Kulu) provides both a unique as well as a highly detailed perspective on how the Ottomans mastered the horseback archery for wars and games. This critical edition of Fevaid-i Gaza is based on a number of the copies of the manuscript found in different countries around the world.

SADAQSHILIQ: THE ART OF MAKING AND SHOOTING THE KAZAKH HORSEBOW
In Kazakhstan the art of archery existed from the prehistoric times, when the first areas of Andronovo culture started appearing at the territory of the republic. Since then the tides of horsebow nomadic nations passed here: the Sakis, Skythians, Huns, Ancient Turks, Kipshaks, Mongols, and finally the Kazakh tribes that fought the Dzhungars with their horsebows. This article consists of a review of the contemporary horse archery movement in the world, describes the history of the Kazakh horsebow origin, distinquishes two main types of horsebows, analyses the literature, and tells about anatomy and construction of the Kazakh horsebow, as well as its performances and usage methods.

CАДАҚШЫЛЫҚ – ҚАЗАҚ АТТЫ САДАҚ БУУ ЖӘНЕ АТУ ӨНЕРІ
Қазақстанда садақшылық өнері тарихтан бұрынғы замандардан-Андроново мәдениеттің алғашқы аймақтары республиканың аумағында туындау кезінде пайда болған. Сол уақыттан бері осы жерден бірталай атты садақты көшпенділер толқындары өтіп кетті: сақа-скифтер, хундар, көне түркілер, қыпшақтар, монғолдар, және ақырында жонғарлармен атты садақпен соғысатын қазақ тайпалары. Бұл мақаланың ішінде: заманауи әлемдегі атты садақшылық қозғалыстың шолуы, ғылыми әдебиетіның анализы, қазақ атты садақтың қайнар көзіңнің тарихы, атты садақтың екі түрлерін атап кетуі, олардың анатомиясын мен құрылымын және садақтың қолдалыну тәсілдері туралы анықтамасы бар екен.

САДАҚШЫЛЫҚ -ИСКУССТВО ИЗГОТОВЛЕНИЯ И СТРЕЛЬБЫ ИЗ КАЗАХСКОГО КОННОГО ЛУКА
В Казахстане традиция стрельбы из лука существовала с древнейших времен, когда первые очаги андроновской цивилизации возникли на территории нашей республики. С тех пор через казахстанские степи прошли целые пласты конно-лучных кочевых народов: скифы-саки, хунну, древние тюрки, кыпшаки, монголы, и наконец казахские племена, воевавшие с луками против джунгаров. В данном исследовании: обзор современного движения конных лучников в мире, история происхождения казахского лука, описание двух основных типов луков, анализ научной литературы литературы, справка о строении и анатомии, а также работе и методах использования казахского конного лука.

Fiche de l’inventaire du patrimoine culturel immatériel français
Ministère de la culture, 2015

Le bouquet provincial est une tradition très
ancrée en Picardie, en Ile-de-France et en
Champagne. Il s’agit à la fois d’une fête très
populaire mais aussi d’une saison de compétition
à laquelle [...]

В своей бакалаврской работе я попытался описать роль стрельбы из лука в культурной и социально-политической жизни маньчжуров, народа, правившего Китаем на протяжении двух с половиной веков.

Основное внимание уделено:
1) Символическому значению лука у маньчжуров и родственных им народов.
2) Роли лука в маньчжурском языке.
3) Роли стрельбы из лука в политической идеологии и национальной идентичности маньчжуров.

Основные источники - Дацин Личао Шилу и Маньвэнь Лаодан, главные теоретики, на работы которых опирается работа - Эллиотт,  Геллнер, Лакофф и Хобсбаум.

Особая благодарность Питеру Деккеру и Константину Тертицкому.

Archer´s equipment constists of two basic components, bow and arrow, and the accesories in form of bowcase and quiver. Aim of this work is summraization of avilable knowledge about this artefacts during the early and late medieval period. Analysed area was set on the region within todays´ borders of Slovak republic, due to the geographical differences and complexity of Carpathian basin and its northern part in general. Paper presents terminology, whic reflects archaeological terms combined with traditional archery jargon, used in typology of bow and it´s parts. Typological scale of arrowheads is based on multilevelled cascade hierarchical categorization, reflecting different observable morphological aspect. Secondary accessories is analyzed individually for each researched time period, because this group of items is most usually invisible in archaeological material. Presented paper follows changes in the archery related material culture from the age of Avar khaganate, through Great Moravian period and arrival of the old Hungarian tribes, until the fully established Kingdom of Hungary. Different influences are possible to indentify, together with local archery armament evolution. These are most usually brought by newcoming nomadic societies, in chosen time period starting with Avars and ending with Cumans. Presentet thesis also compares analysed types of artefacts in neighbouring or other relevant areas and aims to find similarities or disimilarities that are explainable by comoon or different historical development or by differences in ethnic or cultural composition of societies.

This paper is a study of the traditional use of a special kind of wood in bow construction in Eurasia and North America. This special kind of wood, called compression wood and coming from coniferous trees, has unique qualities that makes it suitable for bow construction. Bows made using this special wood have been referred to as Finno-Ugric bows, Sámi bows, Two-Wood bows and Eurasia laminated bows. These bows appear to have developed from archaic forms of compression wood self bows that were made from a single piece of wood. Recently features similar to the Eurasian compression wood bows have been discovered in bows originating from Alaska, and the use of compression wood for bow manufacture has been known to some Canadian Inuit groups. This paper addresses the origin and possible diffusion pattern of this innovation in bow technology in Eurasia and suggests a timeframe and a possible source for the transfer of this knowledge to North America. This paper also discusses the role of the Asiatic composite bow in the development of bows in Eurasia.

Written sources describe Mongols as potent riders that learn the craft of archery since they are  small  children,  both boys  and girls. Authors  describing their war efforts  are writing about “arrow-hails” or “raining arrows” and warriors equipped with at least two bows and three quivers. The compares written sources about the archery, mainly from the Secret History of the Mongols with the archaeological data from the area of Mongol Empire.

Translation to English of talk given at Complutense University, History department,Madrid. For "De fuste e de Fierro". Armamento medieval en la Peninsula Iberica. IV International Seminar. 9-10th March, 2020.

The talk deals with use of the bow in Al-Andalus as a favored military weapon since its beginning in 711 to its demise in 1492 and by contrast its apparent absence in the northern states that confront it. Discussed are the two types mentioned in an Arabic chronical reference and delves on the possible historical origin of what the sources call the 'Arab bow'. It touches also on the apparent ‘sacralization’ of the bow in the general Islamic context. Its appearance in the few pictorial references in Al-Andalus and discussed are the two types that appear in them. Also discussed is their relative effectiveness, construction, and the materials used and their specific differences. All this in contrast to the apparent lack of the use of the bow as a military weapon in the Christian states that were slowly formed at the north of the Iberian Peninsula. This could in part be due, it is argued, to a profound atavistic ideological rejection of the said weapon as being that of ‘the other’. The very  negative ideological view of the bow is reflected and materialized in the art of the Christian north as can clearly be see in the Romanesque art of the Iberia Peninsula.

En esta breve y concisa exposición, se intenta aportar una serie de pautas básicas de cara a entender un tanto más coherente, el principal funcionamiento del arco compuesto asiático, así como una terminología esencial, máxime teniendo en cuenta la aridez y escasez de trabajos dedicados exclusivamente a esta temática en concreto.

Given at Complutense University, History department,Madrid. For "De fuste e de Fierro". Armamento medieval en la Peninsula Iberica. IV International Seminar. 9-10th March, 2020.

Corrected and modified14/April/20. For original Spanish version see: https://www.academia.edu/42297918/

The talk deals with use of the bow in Al-Andalus as a favored military weapon since its beginning in 711 to its demise in 1492 and by contrast its apparent absence in the northern states that confront it. Discussed are the two types mentioned in an Arabic chronical references and delves on the possible historical origin of what the sources call the 'Arab bow'. It touches also on the apparent ‘sacralization’ of the bow in the general Islamic context. Its appearance in the few pictorial references in Al-Andalus and discussed are the two types that appear in them. Also discussed is their relative effectiveness, construction, and the materials used and their specific differences. All this in contrast to the apparent lack of the bow as a military weapon in the Christian states that were slowly formed at the north of the Iberian Peninsula. This could in part be due, it is argued, to a profound atavistic ideological rejection of the said weapon as being that of ‘the other’. The very graphic negative ideologically view of the bow is reflected and materialized in their art as can clearly be see in the Romanesque art of the Iberia Peninsula.

L'articolo descrive il fenomeno del "paradosso dell'Arciere" relativo alla dinamica della freccia accellerata dalla spinta della corda. Particolare attenzione viene posta sulle conseguenze degli impatti a bersaglio rispetto all'asse orizzontale. Viene analizzata la sequenza sperimentale di Hickman, Nagler e Klopsteg e i dati desunti dalle foto pubblicate su Archery, the Technical Side (1947). Vengono propostedall'autore alcune interpretazioni del fenomeno e descritti i sistemi sperimentali adottati.

A considerable number of bows or fragments dating from the Mesolithic Age have been discovered at different sites in Northern Europe, most of them in what is now Denmark (DK). All are made of elm wood, and while they show great similarity in general design, they differ in detail.
The finds from the Mesolithic site Holmegaard IV in Zealand/DK – one complete bow, one fragment – are dated to ca 6,500 BC, making them the oldest bows in the world discovered to date. They were made of elm wood (Ulmus glabra) with very narrow growth rings. Since they are of very distinctive design, later bows of similar shape are often said to be of the „Holmegaard type“. Characteristics of this design are: a deep and narrow grip section; wide and flat limbs; the widest parts of the limbs are above and below the handle, tapering towards the ends;
limb cross-section of a flat D shape, with rounded back and flat belly.
Roughly one dozen complete bows of this design and a number of similar fragments dating from ca 6,500 BC to 1,700 BC have until now been found in Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, and Sweden.
The paper offers an overview of some of the bows from Mesolithic Denmark which has been compiled from a variety of sources, sometimes contradicting each other, and tries to present the most reliable data and facts concerning these artefacts.
First published in Lee, Noh-Shin (Ed.), Study of Structures, Materials & Manufacturing Processes of World Traditional Bows & Arrows, Cheonan 2009, pp. 155-180.

There was nothing second-rate about the English way of war in the Late Middle Ages, argues Tobias Capwell, Curator of Arms and Armour at London’s Wallace Collection, in a major new study published late last year. The early 15th-century English warrior was at the forefront of military innovation. And the key to success was combined-arms tactics.

Turkish archery has been a sport with its institutional aspects like a well-structured training methodology, regularly organized competitions, and exceptional suprastructures such as Archery Fields and Archery Schools and their management. And all these as  as early as 15th century, long before the bow and arrow lost its importance as a weapon of war. Other than the physical features there was a unique mystic character that has connections to Islamic mysticism. With all these characteristics, Turkish archery reveals a unique archery tradition.

Archery had a dominant role in Bronze Age, especially in later period. The technological evolution from the self bows to the composites was a significant factor that affected the Warfare in several ways. Composite’s critical advantage was that they can be made smaller because they retain their strength through the correlation of different materials (wood, sinew, horn). They had more strength, far more range and their small
size results in more mobility than the self bows1. The first depiction of a probable composite bow lays in the victory stele of Naram-Sin of Akkad (23rd century BC)2. It was introduced into Egypt by the Hyksos in the 18th Century. The earliest example of a composite bow was found in the tomb of Ahmose Penhant (16th century BC)3 while thirty-two more have been found in the tomb of Tutankhamen4. However we do not have any archaeological examples from the Aegean Bronze Age world. This brief study will try to approach the issue of the use of composite bows in the Minoan and Mycenaean Warfare attempting to include all the possible archaeological iconographical and textual evidence that could support this argument.

This thesis examines the development of bow-arrow technology in terms of modem evolutionary theory. Previous approaches that propose functional-adaptive technological trajectories are critiqued. Different theoretical approaches towards technology and associated units of analysis are examined. Behavioural ecology, evolutionary archaeology, and dual inheritance theory are shown to hold most promise for explaining trait-lineages in a given technological tradition. Previous approaches to bow-arrow technology are analysed, and an evolutionary archaeological methodology appropriate for examining lithic armatures is presented. Environment, historical contingency, selection, drift, population dynamics and social learning mechanisms are seen as key complex factors requiring case by case examination. An evolutionary case study with nine temporally, geographically, and culturally related stratigraphic phases containing a total of 3600 complete lithic armatures from the south Scandinavian middle Mesolithic (c. 6600-5400 BC) is presented. The phases are described in terms of associated fine-grained archaeological data and previous interpretations. A Bayesian chronological framework is constructed for the case study, using modelling facilities in the OxCal calibration package. This method time-steps and calculates relative occupation durations of point bearing phases in terms of available archaeological and radiometric data. The chronological model covers the culture-historical periods termed Blak, Kongemose and Early Ertebolle phases. The validity of previous typological interpretations of projectile point sequences is questioned in light of these results. The nine time-stepped lithic armature assemblages are then analysed to describe inter- and intra-site point trait variation. A linked series of descriptive and multivariate statistical techniques identify key morphological attributes that summarise trait variation within and between phases. Variation is graphically represented and related to different social learning populations, reduction strategies, and engineering constraints. A remarkably long-term homogenous pattern of complex projectile point manufacture is found for the Kongemose phases, compared to the temporally bracketing Blak and Ertebolle phases. Faunal, climatic, and population level factors are then modelled to account for variation and stability of the case study's armature traits. Faunal data from the Tagerup and Segebro sites, spanning the case study period, are examined for possible diet breadth changes, in relation to point-trait variation. No functional relationship is found between point-shape and potential target-prey. A population model is then constructed in OxCal using all published south Scandinavian radiometric data from the final Maglemose to the final Ertebolle cultural phases. A simple model of landmass reduction, forestation cover and mammalian population density levels demonstrates reduced land mass alone would not significantly affect human population levels - even with relatively high human population densities. Holocene 5180 and A14C data is used as a proxy for contemporaneous climatic fluctuations. These proxies are plotted and superimposed onto the population graph. A correlation between climate change, population fluctuation, and projectile point technology is found. As changes in point morphology and lithic reduction strategies coincide with apparent regional drops in population, drift processes may account for some variation in point-shape.