are exceptional, a very large
majority of the quivers being open, and having the feathered ends of the
arrows projecting from them.

There is nothing remarkable in the Assyrian arrows except their perfect
finish and completeness in all that constitutes the excellence of such a
weapon. The shaft was thin and straight, and was probably of reed, or of
some light and tough wood. The head was of metal, either of bronze or
iron, and was generally diamond-shaped, like a miniature spear-head.
[PLATE CV., Fig. 4. ] It was flattish, and for greater strength had
commonly a strongly raised line down the centre. The lower end was
hollowed, and the shaft was inserted into it. The notching and
feathering of the shaft were carefully attended to. It is doubtful
whether three feathers were used, as by ourselves and by the Egyptians,
or two only as by many nations. The fact that we never see more than
two feathers upon the monuments cannot be considered decisive, since the
Assyrian artists, from their small knowledge of perspective, would have
been unable to represent all three feathers. So far as we can judge from
the representations, it would seem that the feathers were glued to the
wood exactly as they are with ourselves. The notch was somewhat large,
projecting beyond the line of the shaft--a construction rendered
necessary by the thickness of the bowstring., which was seldom less than
of the arrow it-self. [PLATE CV., Fig. 5.]

The mode of drawing the bow was peculiar. It was drawn neither to the
ear, nor to the breast, but to the shoulder. In the older sculptures the
hand that draws it is represented in a curiously cramped and unnatural
position, which can scarcely be supposed to be true to nature. But in
the later bas-reliefs greater accuracy seems to have been attained, and
there we probably see the exact mode in which the shooting was actually
managed. The arrow was taken below the feathers by the thumb and
forefinger of the right hand, the forefinger bent down upon it in the
way represented in the accompanying illustration, and the notch being
then placed upon the string, the arrow was drawn backwards by the thumb
and forefinger only, the remaining three fingers taking no part in the
operation. [PLATE CVI., Fig. 1.] The bow was grasped by the left hand
between the fingers and the muscle of the thumb, the thumb itself being
raised, and the arrow made to pass between it and the bow, by which it
was kept in place and prevented fro