Natives' Multi-Use Bow Rods and Sinew Twisting

in op- posite directions. These rods serve a double purpose at Point Barrow, for the natives use them for playing a game something of the nature We of " pitch-penny." purchased a number of them under the impres- sion that this was their only use, and it was not until we had been a long time at the station that we were told that two of them made a set and that they were used, somehow, in twisting the sinews on the back of the bow. So few bows are now made that we had no opportunity of seeing them in use. 316 REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1884. In looking over the Museum collections on my return, I found large numbers of these tools, all essentially of the same pattern, and_^enerally in pairs, often accompanied by a small ivory marlinespike. They came from many localities along the coast from the Mackenzie region to Norton Sound, and were variously labeled "bow tools," " bow-string _twisters," and "arrow polishers" (!) without further explanation, ex^ cept in the case of one pair collected by Mr. Nelson, which were cata- logued as for " tightening the sinew on a bow. Always used in pairs."* I have been unable to find any published explanation of the method of using these tools. After wasting much time in conjectures, I discovered the modus operandi by actual experiment, while making a model of one of the Point Barrow bows. It is very ingenious, and is well shown in the diagram (Figs. 28 and 29, drawn from a working model), The end a is thrust between the strands to be twisted, so that the hook catches part of them, and the lever making a half-revolution is brought up against the bow, as in Pig. 28. It can con tinue_the twisting no further in this direction, and if withdrawn for a fresh start the strands _would have to be held or fastened in some way, which would make the process a slow one. Accordingly, the rod is thrust through between the strands until the end & is where a was (Fig. 29), when the hook at h catches the strands and the lever is ready for another half-revolution. Tbls is continued, the rod slipping back and forth like the handle of ^a vise, until the cable is sufficiently twisted. The reason for using them in pairs was not satisfactorily explained, until Lieut. P. H. Eay, the commanding officer of our expedition, suggested that they could be used simultaneously, one in each cable, so as to secure the same amount of twist in the two. I tested this and found it perfectly easy to work one with each handT The accompanying map is a tracing, with some modifications, of part of Mr. Ball's "Alaska and Adjoining Region." "Alr^ Nelson has kindly favored me with all the information he was able to obtain about these implements. He never saw them in actual use, but the natives of the region about Norton Sound informed him that they were used for " twisting the sinew strands first and then for tightening the plaited or braided sinew backing to the bows after the latter was in place." He describes their use for twisting sinew to make the "hard-laid sinew cord," as follows: "The ends of the sinew cord are tied to the small center holes in the two ivory pieces, one of the latter at each end of the cord, and then they are twisted in opposite directions." He_tel.U,me,that tliey are also used for playing a game as at Point Barrow. PLATE I. (Murdoch. Eskimo bows.) Fig. 1. Bow of reindeer antler, with simple backing of ainew, from Cumberland Gulf, No. 34053. Collected by L. Kumlien. Side and buck, reduced. Fig. 2. Straight bow, with simplest form of ^'Southern" backing, from near Cape Romanzolf, No. 36032. Collected by E. W. Nelson. Side and back, re- duced. -- Note. Every reduced figure is accompanied by a scale, on which each division represents one inch. Report Nat. Mus. 1884.-- Murdoch. Eskimo Bows. PLATE I. '{1 I'll Fig. 1. Fig. 2. PLATE II. (Murdoch. Eskimo bows.) Fig. 2a. One end of No. 36032 (from near Cape Eomanzoff. Collected by E. W. Nelson) to show attachment of the backing to the nock. Natural size. Fig. 3. Straight bow, with "Southern" backing, in which some strands are short, No. 72408, from Bristol Bay. Collected by the late C. L. McKay. Back, reduced. Fig. 3a. The broadest part of the same bow, to show the attachment of the shorl strands. Natural size. Report Nat. Mus. 1884--Murdoch. Eskimo Bows. PLATE 11. II t[ Fig. 3. Fig. 3a. PLATE III. (Mardoch. Eskimo bows.) Fig. 4. Straight bow, with "Southern" backing, No. 7972, from Bristol Bay. Collected by Dr. Minor. One-half of back, reduced, to show spiral seizing. , Fig. 5. Bow with bent ends, with "Southern" backing, strung, No. 36028, from the mouth of the Kuskoquim river. Collected by E. W. Nelson. Side, re- duced. Fig. 6. Large straight bow, with "Southern" backing, twisted, No. 15651, from Nunivak Island. Collected by W. H. Dall. One-half of back, reduced. Fig. 7. Straight bow, with '�' Southern " backing. No. 36034. Collected by E. W. Nelson. One-half of back, reduced. Report Nat. Mus. 1SS4 -Murdoch Eskiuu. Bows. PLATE III. Flo. 4. Fig. 5. Fin. 6. Fig. 7. PLATE IV. (Murdoch. Eskimo bows.) Fig. 8. straight bow of "Arctic" type, strung, No. 1972, from the Mackenzie region. Collected by Ross. Side and back, reduced. Fig. 9. B^w .if Tatar shfloe, with "Arctic" backing, No. 89245, from Point Barrow. Collected by United States International Polar Expedition. Side, reduced. Fig. 12. Left-handed "soldier's hitch." Fig. 13. Right-handed "soldier's hitch." 1 Report Nat. Mus. 1884.--Murdoch. Eskimo Bows. PLATE IV. Fig. 12. Fig. 13. Fig. 8. Fig. 9. PLATE V. (Murdoch. Eskimo bows.) Fig. 10. Section of "Arctic" bow, No. 89245, to show method of attaching the short strands. Natural size. Fig. 11. Same section of No. 72771, from Wainwright's Inlet. Collected by United States International Polar Expedition. Natural size. i-por t Xat. Mus. 1884.--Muiiloch. Eskimo Bows. fti'l \i I PLATE V. iL'lllt i.^^ !t?J -3 ...4 L.-6 ZF.^ -^,. -.--ji--.a . I Fkv. 11. ) PLATE VL (Murdoch. Eskimo bows. Fig. 14. Section of an "Arctic" bow (No. 1970, from the Mackenzie region. Collected by Ross) to show the peculiar (reversed) attachment of the short strands. Natural size. Fig. 15. Straight " Southern " bow, No. 33867, from the Yukon delta. Collected by E. W. Nelson, unusually thick and narrow, with complete spiral seizing. Back and side, reduced. I -- Keport Nat. ilus. 18f!4. iluidocli. Eskimo Bows. PLATE VI. Fig. 15. PLATE VII. (Mardoch. Eskimo bows.) Fig. 16. Straight bow of "Southern" model, with "Arctic" backing, No. 8822, from the Yukon delta. Collected by W. H. Dall. Back, reduced. Fig. 17. Section of the same bow, natural size, to show the attachment of the short strands. Fig. 18. Bow of "Western" type, No. 2505, from the mainland of Siberia. Collected by the North Pacific Exploring Expedition. Back and side, reduced. Report X;it. Mus. 1884.--MuidocL Eskimo Bowa. PLATE VII. m i il .1 Fig. 17. Fic. 16. Fig. 18. PLATE VIII. (Murdoch. Eskimo bows.) FiQ. 19. Section of No. 2505, to show the attachment of the end cable, underneath the backing. Natural size. Fig. 20. Modified "soldier's hitch," used on seizing of No. 2505. P^iG. 21. Straight bow, with "Western" backing, No. 2508, from Eastern Siberia. Collected by the North Pacific Exploring Expedition. Back, reduced. I . ort Nat. Mus. 1884.-Murdoch. Eskimo Bows. PLATE VIIL Fig. 19 Fig. 20. Fig. 21. PLATE IX. (Mardocb. Eskimo bows.) Fig. 22. Section of No. 2505, to show the attachment of the end cable, underneath the backing. Natural size. Fig. 23. Bow with "Arctic" backing, modified so as to approach the "Western," No. 259G, from Eastern Siberia. Collected by the North Pacific Exploring Expedition. Back and side, reduced. Eeport Nat. Mns. 1884.-Murdoch. Eskimo Bows. ( flLi.-lJUd.iJ"^.' PLATE IX. '(" //' ? Mi: Fig. ?2. Fig. 23. PLATE X. (Murdoch. Eskimo bows.) Fig. 24. Section of No. 2506, to show the attachment of the single short strand, returning from bend to nock. Natural size. Fig. 25. Peculiar clove-hitch used on the same bow. Fig. 26. Reversed "soldier's hitch" in the seizing of No. 2507, from Eastern Siberia. Collected by the North Pacific Exploring Expedition. Fig. 27. Sinew-twisting tool of ivory, No. 894GG, from Point Barrow. Collected by United States International Polar Expedition. Front and side, natural 'size. Report Nat. Mus. ]8tf4.-Munlocb. Esk iuio Bows. PLATE X. Fig. 24 IG. 27. Fig. 26. / PLATE XI. (Murdoch. Eskimo bows.) The process of twisting the two " cables" of the "Arctic " backing. From a working model, reduced one-half. Fig. 28. Position of the tools at the end of a half-turn. Fig. 29. Position of the same, with the tools slipped through to begin a new half-turn. Keport Nat. Mus. 1884.--Muidocli. E.skimo Bows. PLATE XI. Fio. 28. Fir,. 39. PLATE XII. (Mxirdoch. Eskimo bows.) L map to illasirate the distiibution of Eskimo bows in Alaska and tho neighboring regions. (A tracing, with some modifications, from Mr. Dall's "Alaska and the Adjoining Region.") Report Nat. Miis. 1884.--Murdoch. Eskimo Bows. PLATE XIL ""^ A.ArrfieTijpe '^ S. SoufJte.rjt- TifpQ, � �C Western Tijpe. L- E o '2 Murdoch, Johij, : oA study of the Eskt'^^o hows \n the U. S, ^rational Museun. Washington, Gov' Print. Off. (l^an) PLEASE DO NOT REMOVE CARDS OR SLIPS FROM THIS POCKET UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO LIBRARY