China
The deepest collection — crossbows, thumb rings, bow-making, Qing military archery and classical texts. · 33 articles
Scythian Bows
SCYTHIAN-STYLE BOWS DISCOVERED IN XINJIANG From the photographs and drawings of Stephen Selby. By Bede Dwyer Introduction . This is written to give a historical context to the information th…
Early Archers' Rings by Bede Dwyer
Pictures and text © Bede Dwyer, 1997-2001 PREFACE The original version of this article was published in the Journal of the Society of Archer-Antiquaries, Volume 40, 1997. After the article h…
Bows and Arrows from Miran
Bows and Arrows from Miran, China by Andrew Hall and Jack Farrell Originally published in the Journal of The Society of Archer-Antiquaries , #51, 2008, pp. 89-98. Introduction The Silk Road …
A discussion paper on thingies
Thingies Up-close and Personal © Stephen Selby, 2000 Introduction In this article, I am inviting readers to take part in a discussion on thingies. If you are not familiar with thingies, here…
Li Cheng-fen
From the 'Illustrated Guide to Archery Method' by Liu Qi (Qing, 1722) Instructions for Horseback Archery Since ancient times, horseback archery has lacked any supporting literature. All that…
Mental and Bodily Self-improvement
Perfecting the Mind and the Body © Stephen Selby, 1999 The Chinese concept of the ‘accomplished archer’ comprised the achievement of a number of goals. These could be summarized as – Fundame…
Bow and Arrow Symbolism
Bow and Arrow Symbolism by C. G. Seligman In an interesting and stimulating paper, entitled "Some Fecundity Symbols in Ancient China" , [1] Professor Karlgren suggests that the bow and arrow…
Qingxi Zhuyong: "An Collection and Explanation of the Seven Military Classics"
Qingxi Zhuyong: "An Collection and Explanation of the Seven Military Classics" Horseback Archery Method. Horseback archery differs from archery on foot. The crux of the matter lies in traini…
Two Late Han to Jin Bows from Gansu and Khotan
Two Late Han to Jin Bows from Gansu and Khotan Stephen Selby. • Stephen Selby, 2002 (originally published as ATARN Newsletters in April and September 2002) A desert tomb in Jiayuguan, Gansu,…
Ancient Chinese bronze crossbow mechanisms
A Crossbow Mechanism with Some Unique Features from Shandong, China Text and Photographs © Stephen Selby, 2001 I have had an opportunity to examine and photograph a bronze crossbow mechanism…
The History of Ju Yuan Hao
The History of Ju Yuan Hao Bowmakers of Beijing © Trans. Stephen Selby, 1999 The original author of this article is the direct descendant of the old firm. His full name has not been revealed…
Li Cheng-fen
From the 'Wu Bei Yao Lue' (Principle Outlines of Military Preparedness) by Cheng Ziyi (Ming, 1638) Instructions for Horseback Archery For horseback archery, you need to select a good horse f…
Correspondence on repeating crossbows
Repeating Crossbows © Gwen Huskins, Stephen Selby, David Watson, 1999/2000 The following is email correspondence about repeating crossbows initiated by Gwen Huskins, and involving myself and…
Способы стрельбы из лука Чжэннаня
Учитель Ван Чжэннань обладал выдающимся искусством, называемым «мастерство стрельбы из лука». Услышав имя Учителя, я взял с собой немного еды [1] и направился к Драгоценной Хоругви [2] , упо…
Interview with Wu Yonghua
Interview with Ms. Wu Yonghua, 6 April 2000 © Stephen Selby, 2000. Wu Yonghua is the daughter of the late Wu Shusen (1894-1990) of the Chang Xing Bowyers , Chengdu, Sichuan, China. Wu Shusen…
Letter from Peking
A Letter from Peking Dear Friends, A recent business visit to Peking has left me sufficient time to follow up my Chinese traditional archery studies for a few hours and a very interesting …
The Archery Tradition in China
The Archery Tradition of China © Stephen Selby, 1997 Re-printed with permission from INSTINCTIVE ARCHER MAGAZINE Cast about in your memory for what you know about oriental archery. If, like …
The Visible Bow
The Visible Chinese Bow © Stephen Selby, 1999 This article discusses a cross-section analysis of a traditional Chinese bow. A cross-section analysis is a series of cross-sections allowing th…
Chinese whistling arrows
Whistling Arrows and Arrow Whistles © Liao Wanzhen, Trans. Stephen Selby, 1999 A number of names have been given to the whistling arrow in the Chinese language. (Note: ‘whistling arrows’ her…
The Crossbows of South-west China
The Crossbows of South-West China © Stephen Selby, 1999 In 1998, prohibitions on hunting of wild animals in the forests of South-west China aimed at protecting endangered species have probab…
Thingies: follow-up
Thingies Up-close and Personal Follow-up Correspondence From: Adam Karpowicz Sent: Saturday, February 19, 2000 9:55 AM Subject: Re: thingies > > 1. Do you have an illustration of a chariot w…
Changxing Bowyer of Chendu
ATARN SCORES END-OF-CENTURY BULLSEYE LOCAL PRESS HELPS ATARN TRACK DOWN CHENGDU BOWYER'S FAMILY. LAST CHAPTER OF TAN DAN JIONG'S RESEARCH CAN NOW BE WRITTEN. Written by Liang Lan (Trans. Ste…
The Chinese Repeating Crossbow
Ralph Payne-Gallwey 'The Crossbow' Longman's, Green & Co. London, 1903 (The following text and illustrations are no longer protected by copyright; but this HTML typographical arrangement is …
Chinese Bow Holsters and Quivers
Chinese Bow Holsters and Quivers of the Qing Dynasty © Stephen Selby, 2000 A Member has recently asked if I could provide some information on the design of Chinese quivers and related archer…
Interesting Bow - Chinese Siyahs For related material see The Visible Bow
I just got back from the Korean bowyer's place. My son and I went over there to pick up a horn bow. While attending to the requisite politenesses (coffee and talk about life in general), the…
Chinese Archive: Content
Asian Traditional Archery Research Network Chinese Archive The Archery Tradition of China by Stephen Selby Re-printed with permission from INSTINCTIVE ARCHER MAGAZINE Qi Ji-guang's Archery M…
Wu Bei Yao Lue
Illustration from the Wu Bei Yao Lue (‘Outline of Military Preparedness’ : The Theory of Archery) by Chen Zi-yi , 1638 The Wu Bei Yao Lue is part of the flood of Ming military writing which …
Story of Making a Chinese Bow
Story of Making a Chinese Bow © Stephen Selby 2002 The following is a draft storyboard to help in the preparation if an exhibition and a documentary film. People featured in the storyboard a…
Chinese Archives
Qi Ji Guang's Archery Method (Ming) Wu Bei Yao Lue (Ming) Zheng Nan She Fa (Ming/Qing) Guan Shi Xin Zhuan (Qing) She Lue (Qing) Cross-sections of an Old Chinese Bow Making Chinese Arrows Let…
Chinese Horseback Archery
Chinese Horseback Archery Translated for ATARN by Stephen Selby with annotations by Bede Dwyer. © Stephen Selby and Bede Dwyer, 2001 XML-enabled Browsers are required for reading these docum…
Chinese arrows
Making Chinese Traditional Arrows Master Yang Fuxi of Ju Yuan Hao, Beijing Photographed by Florent Berard © 2004 Click on the thumbnails below to view the slideshow . Page last up-dated on 1…
A discussion paper on thingies
Stephen’s Drawings of the Yanghai Bows Done On- Site at Yanghai and Urumqi on 2005 (Raw images – no fancy editing) © Stephen Selby, 2005