Page:A record of European armour and arms through seven centuries (Volume 3).djvu/187

 the chapter on the long bow in the famous Gaston Phoebus MS. of the end of the XIVth century, to which we have already referred, Count Gaston goes on to say that "of the arc [long bow], I do not know too much. He who wants to know all about it must go to England, for that is their 'right craft'" (droit mesurer).

Throughout the XVth century the Morris or Oriental short bow and the long bow, which takes from twenty to twenty-two fists to reach its proper length, were both used with considerable effect by mounted bowmen. They were nearly all made of yew; but ash, elm, and witch hazel were also employed in their manufacture. The strings were made of hemp, flax, and silk. At the end of the XIVth century the price of a painted bow was one shilling and sixpence, the unpainted bow costing one shilling. However, a century later, in fact, in the year 1482, the dearness of bows in England necessitated the passing of a statute to fix the price for a long bow of yew at no more than 3s. 4d In the 1547 Inventory of the Tower, and of Westminster, we note the following items; in the Tower of London section, "bows of eugh iij^{mi}lx" and "Lvvery arrowes xiij^{mi}l* shiefe"; in the Westminster list, "Turquy bowes of Stele," also "Twoo Longe Bowes of Ewghe to shote stones."

One of two recovered from the wreck of the "Mary Rose," sunk near Spithead in 1545. Tower of London, Class XI, No. 1

To the collector who would acquire examples of crossbows with their elaborate winders, opportunities even now occur; for fine and technically interesting specimens sometimes come into the market, and rare as such specimens very naturally are, it is strange how relatively small a price they fetch. But the collector who is attracted by the long bow must perhaps rest content with the acquisition of "braces" or "bracca" of the archer—that protective plate for the inner side of the left arm which shielded it from the continual chafe of the bowstring. These interesting guards are occasionally met with, composed of ivory or bone. An example of an ivory one is illustrated in Skelton's "Meyrick" (Vol. i, Plate XXXIV, fig. 2). They are, however, more commonly made of cuir bouilli, of which latter medium is the archer's brace in the London Museum, found in Whitecross Street. It bears the inscription: "Well Shot." The Tower of London contains two