The Bow of Odysseus: Ancient vs Modern Weapons

Brainy Man’s Bow

Odysseus was the clever Greek hero, even devious. He was a man of mind power over brute force. However, he was no slouch as a warrior, especially with his bow.

Apparently, Smithsonian and the ancient historian Bettany Hughes are producing a “Greek Island Odyssey” series. In it, they take up the question of how powerful Odysseus’ bow actually was. They pit a “hyper-modern” bow against a composite bow built closely after what we know about Odysseus’ bow.

It Takes a Powerful Hero

I am struck by how much more strength and skill the ancient bow requires. Score one for the impressiveness of the hero Odysseus. When his wife Penelope set a test for her would-be suitors to match her long-lost husband’s strength and skill with the bow he’d left behind, she clearly had reason to believe no one except her husband could pull it off. Or presumably some similarly near-super strong hero, who the whippersnappers lolling around her palace clearly weren’t.

Ins and Outs of Odysseus’ Bow

This article in Greek Reporter, “How Does Odysseus’ Bow Fare Against Modern Weapons?” discusses two styles of ancient bows and the details of strength required to create specific force. The article also has the key video clip from the series in which Bettany Hughes watches two archers with modern and ancient-styled bows measure what they can accomplish.

Neither archer matches the picture in my mind of Odysseus taking the bow from the swineherd’s hand, bending it, and shooting his arrow through the axes. He’s far grander and more impressive in my imagination, and I’m going to leave him that way. Nonetheless, I enjoy such experiments in reconstructing the past, and I often use such explorations to give authenticity to what I write. However, I’m willing to leave a cloak of mythical mystery around fictional heroes, especially legendary ones, even if I strive to accurately depict the weapons in their hands. The painting at the top, by the way, shows Hercules’ bow and not accurately, if dramatically.

Here for a post discussing Emily Wilson’s new translation of the Odyssey.