Longbows:
A & B: Wych-elm bows
C: Yew
D & E: Hazel bows

A: Wych-elm, recurved flatbow backed with salmonskin
B: Wych-elm, lightly recurved with a setback handle
C: Double bow with inside bow from Hazel and outer bow from Wych-elm.

Bows re-enforced with sinew:

A: flatbow from Wych-elm.
Loosely backed by a 16 metre long twined sinew layered into a plait. The northern Inuits used this way of re?enforcement.
B: Static recurve from Yew.
The sinew is glued with a mixture of Salmon and glue made from raw skin, and then protected by rattlesnakeskin.

C: Flatbow from Wych-elm.
Sinews glued with the same glue as the bow above.

Same bows, but de-stringed.

A & B: Flatbows from Wych-elm.
C: Flat Ash bow
D & E: Two relatively short flatbows 1600 mm (63”) from Wych-elm, used in re-enactment archery events at the Swedish Viking village Hög for two seasons. These bows have been released approximately 10,000 times each!!!
It is fairly interesting, as I often get the question. “How long does a wooden bow like that last?” Since I’ve never managed to wear one out myself, when people ask I often mention this as an example.

A & B: Flatbows from Wych-elm.
C: Hazel bow.