Great Ming Military

14 August 2017

Ba Dou Chong (八斗銃)

Drawing of a Ba Dou Chong, from 'Wu Bei Zhi (《武備志》)'.

Ba Dou Chong (八斗銃, lit. 'Eight bucket gun') was an unusual weapon that consisted of two double-ended double barrelled handgonnes joined together with a pivot, allowing its user to discharge eight shots in quick succession. While Ba Dou Chong was marginally more useful than the likes of Zhi Heng Chong (直橫銃), it was still an incredibly awkward weapon.

7 August 2017

Chinese multiprod crossbow

MINOR UPDATE OCTOBER 2, 2024

Credited with the invention of crossbow, the Chinese were keen on tinkering with their crossbow and coming out with ever more efficient and powerful designs. Apart from repeating crossbow, which was invented as early as 4th century BC, Chinese bowyers also created another unique crossbow design—the multiprod crossbow, sometimes also known as multiple bow arcuballista. The weapon mounted multiple prods to extend the draw length (and powerstroke) of the crossbow, thus getting more power out of the same draw weight. It was also more efficient and portable than a single prod crossbow of equal power.

There were several variants of multiprod crossbow in use during Tang and Song period, which will be detailed below:

Shuang Gong Chuan Nu (雙弓床弩, lit. 'Double-prod bed crossbow')

Also known as Liang Gong Nu (兩弓弩, lit. 'Two prod crossbow') during Tang period, this crossbow had two prods mounted facing opposite directions of each other. It was spanned by a simple windlass.

Da He Chan Nu (大合蟬弩, lit. 'Great combined cicada crossbow')

Drawing of a Da He Chan Nu, from 'Wu Bei Zhi (《武備志》)'.

2 July 2017