. The life of the Greeks and Romans. ood, both because of the cheapness and the lightness of thematerial. The arrow (oioros, to?) consisted of a shaft (8oi/a£)2 feet in length, made of reed or light wood, and of a generallythree-edged metal head 2 to 3 inches long, with or without a back end of the arrow was notch (y\v(pls) was cut into the shaftwhere it lay on the string. The quiver{(paperpa, ro^oOqicyj) was made of leather orbasket-work. It usually held nineteen ortwenty arrows (Fig. 281). It was carried onthe left side by a strap slung across theshoulders (Figs/ 272 and
. The life of the Greeks and Romans. ood, both because of the cheapness and the lightness of thematerial. The arrow (oioros, to?) consisted of a shaft (8oi/a£)2 feet in length, made of reed or light wood, and of a generallythree-edged metal head 2 to 3 inches long, with or without a back end of the arrow was notch (y\v(pls) was cut into the shaftwhere it lay on the string. The quiver{(paperpa, ro^oOqicyj) was made of leather orbasket-work. It usually held nineteen ortwenty arrows (Fig. 281). It was carried onthe left side by a strap slung across theshoulders (Figs/ 272 and 280), and had a S cover attached to it (Fig. 281, b, c). Sometimes both bow andarrows were kept in the quiver (Fig. 282), as is still the customamongst Mongolians and Kirghis. Bending the bow the archergenerally put one knee on the ground—-a position taken, forinstance by the archer of the iEginetan group (compare , 280). As early as Homers time the Kretans wererenowned as skilful archers. Kretan bowmen formed a peculiar. 248 THE SLING.—THE CHARIOT feature of Greek armies up to the latest times, in the sameway as Makedonian archers were a separate corps of the lightinfantry of Alexander the Great. Amongst barbarians, theSkythians and Parthians were celebrated bowmen, both on footand horseback, The sling (a^evlovif) consisted of a strap, broad in the centreand narrowing towards the two ends. The stone or leaden bullet(fiohvfibis) was placed on the broader part of the strap; inthrowing, the slinger held the two ends of the strap in one hand,and, after whirling the sling round his head several times, threwthe bullet by letting go one end. In the Iliad the sling ismentioned only once as used by a Trojan ; it seems to have beenof Oriental origin. Later on it seems to havebeen adopted by various Greek tribes, who hadexperienced its efficacy in the war with first the Akarnarnians, afterwards the in-habitants of ^Egium, Patrae, Dymse, Rhodes,and Melos, were reno
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