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Heritage

Fifteen centuries in a single bow.

Each Paragon model is tied to a people, a period and, where possible, a specific bow that survives in a museum. This is the lineage.

Historic routes Manchester today

Five traditions, one workshop

    1. 4th–5th c.

      The Huns

      Horse archers from the Asian steppe reach Europe with short, heavily recurved composite bows, the template for every bow that follows.

    2. 907

      Battle of Pozsony

      Magyar light cavalry all but wipe out an East Frankish army in three days. Their horn bows are the inspiration for the Griffin.

      See the Griffin
      Griffin, clear glass over natural bamboo
    3. 13th c.

      The Mongol conquest

      Short limbs and long, straight siyahs: stable, fast bows that the Magyar design came before. The Griffin borrows their stability.

      See the Griffin
    4. 14th–15th c.

      The Timurid Empire

      Turco-Mongol and Persian cultures meet in Central Asia. The Tsaagan Khad and Omnogov finds inspire the Khan.

      See the Khan
      Khan, braced, on stone
    5. 15th–17th c.

      The Ottoman Solaks

      Archer bodyguards of the sultans carry short bows built for function over form. The Solak is named after them.

      See the Solak
      The Ottoman Solaks
    6. 15th–18th c.

      Crimean Tatar cavalry

      For three centuries the scourge of Eastern Europe, riding as outriders on Ottoman campaigns with long, elegant bows.

      See the Raider
    7. 1683

      The Siege of Vienna

      The Ottomans and their allies are defeated. A Tatar bow is taken as booty, and centuries later it reaches Manchester as SA 3158, the basis of the Raider.

      See the Raider
      Raider, braced, on frost
    8. Long-draw tradition

      Korea & Manchuria

      Korean and Manchu archers draw past the ear. Their influence shapes the Great Khan’s long draw and gentle kick.

      See the Great Khan
      Korea & Manchuria
    9. 1990s

      The revival

      Interest in Asiatic-style bows grows alongside instinctive ‘barebow’ shooting.

    10. Today

      Paragon Bows, Manchester

      Robert Pozderka studies the originals in the Manchester Archery Collection and builds working replicas from modern laminates.

      Robert in the workshop, Manchester

    Manchester Archery Collection

    The originals are a bus ride away.

    Rob’s research involved painstaking examination of many original specimens in the Manchester Archery Collection at Manchester Museum. His aim: to recreate these bows accurately using modern laminate technology, starting with arguably the most elegant design of all, the Tatar.

    Catalogue no.
    SA 3158
    Type
    Crimean Tatar composite bow
    Provenance
    Taken as booty, Siege of Vienna, 1683
    Paragon model
    The Raider
    Concept design · not the official website