Chinese archery equipment

UPDATED DECEMBER 18, 2023

NOTE: This blog post was originally called "Equipment of a Ming soldier — Archer". However, I quickly realised that some equipment listed below are actually training equipment or only used in ceremonial, hunting, or leisure archery, so I changed it to its current title.

Wearable equipment

Gong Du (弓䪅)

Drawing of a bow case, from a Japanese reprint of 'She Shi (《射史》)'.

Gong Du was a bow case/bow holster. It was also called Gong Dai (弓袋, bow bag) as well as a variety of other names.

Sa Dai (撒袋)

Drawing of a tube quiver (left), from a Japanese reprint of 'She Shi (《射史》)'.

Sa Dai was an umbrella term for arrow quiver. A variety of quiver designs, both tube and pressurised, were used in China, although pressurised quiver (which squeezed the arrows in place to prevent them from falling out of the quiver, making it more convenient for horse archery) became the dominant type as early as Song period. 

Drawing of a pressurised quiver (right), from a Japanese reprint of 'She Shi (《射史》)'.

Chinese quiver was known by many different names depending of its type. Generally speaking, tube quiver was called Jian Tong (箭筒, lit. 'Arrow tube'), Jian Dai (箭袋, lit. 'Arrow bag') or Hu Lu (葫蘆, lit. 'Gourd'), whereas pressurised quiver was called Jian Ru (箭箙), which also referred to another ancient type of rigid box quiver that fell out of use after Han period. In addition, Hu Lu (胡簶) referred to a different type of enclosed tube quiver of which the arrows were stored points-up.

Shou Xiu (手袖)

Drawing of an archer's sleeve (left), from a Japanese reprint of 'She Shi (《射史》)'.

Shou Xiu was an arm-length archer's sleeve worn on the bow-holding arm to prevent the wide sleeve from catching the bowstring, as well as to protect the arm from accidental whipping from the bowstring. It was also known as Shi (拾).

Zhi Ji (指機)

Different perspectives of a Chinese thumb ring, from 'Jing Guo Xiong Lue (《經國雄略》)'.

Zhi Ji, also known as Ban Zhi (扳指) or She (韘), was an archery thumb ring. The type that was commonly used during Ming period was also called Ma Ti Ji (馬蹄機, lit. 'Horse hoof tool') after its hoof-like shape.

Pei Ji (佩機)

Drawing of a thumb ring holder (right), from a Japanese reprint of 'She Shi (《射史》)'.

Pei Ji was a thumb ring holder that could be worn on the belt like a waist pendant. It was usually made from ivory or sheep's horn.

Arrow retrieval

Jian Na (箭挐)

Two types of Jian Ru, from a Japanese reprint of 'She Shi (《射史》)'.

Jian Na was a wooden tongs used by horse archer to pick up arrow on the ground without having to dismount. Some variants of Jian Na came with two small hooks on their handles. The downward hook permitted the tongs to be hung on a wall when not in use, and could be used to hook away small accessories from enemy horseman. On the other hand, the upward hook served as a rest for bow holster or quiver.

Preservation and maintenance

Gong Yi (弓衣)

Gong Yi was a fabric or leather waterproofed bag used to store an unstrung bow to protect it from the elements. It was also known as Tao (韜), Chang (韔), and many other names. It should be noted that the Chinese did not make a clear nomenclature distinction between an unstrung bow bag and a holster for strung bow.

Zhu Bi Gun Teng (竹閉緄滕)

Drawing of a Zhu Bi Gun Teng, from a Japanese reprint of 'She Shi (《射史》)'.

Zhu Bi Gun Teng, proper name Bi (閉 or 䪐), also known as Qing (檠), was a tool made of bamboo splits that was used to prevent twisting or warping of bow limbs when the bow was not in use. 

Gong Zheng (弓正)

Drawing of a Gong Zheng, from a Japanese reprint of 'She Shi (《射史》)'.

Gong Zheng was a tool used to correct a twisted/misaligned bow limb. It was usually made of bamboo.

Jian Duan (箭端)

Drawing of a Jian Duan, from a Japanese reprint of 'She Shi (《射史》)'. 

Jian Duan was a simple arrow straightener. It was made from soft root of willow tree to reduce the risk of damaging the arrow shaft being fixed.