Crossbow (Halbe Rüstung) with Cranequin (Winder) crossbow, ca. 1575–1650; cranequin dated 1562 probably German, possibly Saxony; cranequin, probably German The straight walnut stock of this crossbow is inlaid with staghorn in an interlaced pattern of strapwork; upper and lower faces are veneered in staghorn engraved with masks and strapwork. Approximately in the middle of the stock is the nut––the pivoted bone cylinder with two cutouts, one for the string and one for the sear––and also a notch for the butt of the bolt. Directly to the rear of the nut is the folding peep sight, adjustable verti

Crossbow (Halbe Rüstung) with Cranequin (Winder) crossbow, ca. 1575–1650; cranequin dated 1562 probably German, possibly Saxony; cranequin, probably German The straight walnut stock of this crossbow is inlaid with staghorn in an interlaced pattern of strapwork; upper and lower faces are veneered in staghorn engraved with masks and strapwork. Approximately in the middle of the stock is the nut––the pivoted bone cylinder with two cutouts, one for the string and one for the sear––and also a notch for the butt of the bolt. Directly to the rear of the nut is the folding peep sight, adjustable vertically and horizontally. Farther back is a transverse peg, which serves as the rest for the winder. A hand's breadth from the butt end is an inserted brass thumb rest. The release mechanism is double, a long lever and a hair trigger with three forward sears which can be set by inserting a peg through a set-hole in the stock. The folding hair trigger is under the in front of the trigger is a safety swivel. The release nut is secured by eight strands of hemp thread bound around the stock. The steel bow is lashed to the forked forward end of the stock by heavy hemp cords, which also hold a suspension ring. Pompoms of green wool are attached to the bow as decoration (Aufputz).Throughout the Middle Ages the crossbow was the most widely used missile weapon, through the English longbow has been much more popularized in modern romantic literature. Due to the extraordinary strength of its steel bow, the crossbow had superior penetration power and an accuracy barely surpassed by the modern rifle. It could have up to ten times the "pull" of a longbow, and therefore had to be spanned mechanically. As a consequence, its shooting speed was much slower than that of a longbow, but since both archers and crossbowmen carried only a limited supply of missiles––usually twenty-four arrows––into battle, shooting quickly might mean running out of ammunition too fast.

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