range of up to 500 yards in battle. The mounted archer could get off be-
tween six and twelve shots per minute. In antiquity the pulls of the bows
often exceeded 100 pounds, sometimes in the range of 110–120 pounds
pull. One of the advantages of a recurve bow is that after the initial pull,
the bow “works with the archer” and is easier to hold at full draw.
The manner in which the bow is drawn (or in this case pushed) is also
unique, in that the bow is primarily pushed away from the string rather than
the string being solely pulled away from the bow. This feature has a twofold
purpose. Not only is the bow stronger and often more flexible than the
string, but it is an advantage, biomechanically, to push rather than pull.
The “Mongolian grip” used on the string is also unique. This grip can
be identified by how the thumb hooks the string and is placed between the
middle and forefinger. Traditionally, the archer wore a metal, bone, or
antler ring on the thumb. Once the Chinese adopted this style of bow, the
thumb ring was also sometimes made out of jade in China. The ring had a
square stud on the palm side of the ring, which helped the archer in getting
and maintaining his/her grip on the bowstring. In addition, the thumb ring
helped the archer maintain control over the string, which, when the bow is
completely drawn, is at an acute angle.
Arrowheads were constructed primarily out of bone and horn. Even
today in sporting archery, bone arrowheads with squared-off tips are the
standard. Modern arrows today are approximately 75 centimeters in
length. Most modern bows have pulls in the 50–70 pounds pull range.
In times past, archery was practiced both afoot and mounted. Today
mounted archery is rarely practiced. Though there still exist several styles
of archery within Mongolia, there has been a gradual shift toward a stan-
dardized version for competitive reasons.
During archery competitions, contestants fire from afoot at targets
that are traditionally made from sheep gut and are individually approxi-
mately 8 centimeters by 8 centimeters. The distance from archer to target
is between 35 meters and 75 meters, depending upon the style of archery.
Archers shoot twenty arrows at two separate target constructions.
One construction is a wall of stacked targets approximately 50 centimeters
high and 4 meters long. The second target is a square made up of thirty in-
dividual targets. Scorers relate how the archer is faring via style-specific
singing. There is some divergence in targets, bows, and ranges depending
upon the style of archery in question.
Traditionally, the central feature of Mongolian society was the horse.
The horse was used in every facet of steppe life. Herding, hunting, and war
all took place on horseback. This lifestyle allowed the nomads to con-
stantly perfect the major skills that gave them the military success that car-
ried them across the world. Nomads learned to ride as soon as they could348 Mongolia