Fig. 445. Showing attachment of arrowhead vertically and parallel to shank. (National Museum, Washington. b, 10137.) ½
The bows which are made of antlers generally consist of three pieces, a stout central one slanted on both sides and two side pieces riveted to it. The central part is either below or above the side ones, as represented in [Fig. 440]. These bows are strengthened by plaited sinews in the same way as the wooden ones and generally the joints are secured by strong strings wound around them. A remarkable bow made of antlers is represented in Fig. 441. The central part is not slanted, but cut off straight. The joint is effected by two additional pieces on each side, a short stout one outside, a long thin one inside. These are firmly tied together with sinews. The short piece prevents the parts from breaking apart, the long one gives a powerful spring. The specimen here represented was brought home by Hall from the Sinimiut of Pelly Bay, and a similar one was brought by Collinson from Victoria Land and has been deposited in the British Museum. The strings are attached to these bows in the same way as to the wooden ones.
Fig. 446. Various forms of arrowhead. (National Museum, Washington. a, 29993; e, 10213.) ½
The arrows (qaqdjung) are made of round pieces of wood generally tapering a little towards the lower end, to which two feathers of an owl or some other bird are attached. The bone heads of these arrows are joined to the shaft as represented in [Fig. 442], while metal heads are inserted as shown in Fig. 443. The difference in the methods used by the Mackenzie and the central tribes in fastening the point to the shaft is very striking. The arrow point of the former and of the western tribes is pointed and inserted in the shaft (Fig. 444),[5] while that of the latter is always slanted and lashed to it (Figs. 442 and 443). The direction of the slant is either parallel or vertical to the edge (Fig. 445). Other forms of arrows are shown in Fig. 446. A similar difference between the fastenings of the socket to the spear handle exists in the two localities. The western tribes give its base the form of a wedge (Fig. 447), which is inserted in the shaft, while the Central Eskimo use a mortise.
Fig. 447. Socket of spear handle from Alaska. (National Museum, Washington. 36060.) ¼