Ban cung la mot nghe thuat, thuc hanh hoac ki nang su dung cung đe đay cac mui ten đi nham đen đich. Thuat ban cung co lich su lau đoi, nguoi ta su dung cung cho viec đi san bat hoac chien tranh; trong thoi hien đai, no van con đuoc su dung thong qua cac phuong thuc giai tri va cung la mot mon the thao. Nguoi biet ban cung đuoc goi la "cung thu". Trong lich su, nhung nguoi du muc, đac biet la nguoi Mong Co noi tieng voi tai ban cung bach phat bach trung.


Lich su Cung duong nhu đuoc sang tao trong khoang cuoi thoi ky đo đa cu hoac đau thoi ky Mesolithic. Cay cung đuoc su dung lau đoi nhat đuoc biet toi o Chau Au tu Stellmoor trong Thung lung Ahrensburg phia bac cua thanh pho Hamburg, Đuc. No đuoc tien đoan la o cuoi thoi ky Paleolithic, khoang 10.000–9.000 truoc cong nguyen. Cung ten đuoc tao boi Cay thong va bao gom co can va phan than dai 15–20 cen ti met (6–8 inch) voi mui ten. Luc đo chua đinh nghia la cung; truoc đo mui ten đa đuoc biet, nhung bi thay đoi boi lao đuoc su dung nhieu hon cung.
Loai cung đuoc biet toi nhu la cay cung co nhat tim thay o đam lay Holmegaard trong Đan Mach. Cung cuoi cung cung đuoc su dung thay cho lao va chiem uu the hon han lao va mot so nguoi bat đau xep lao va cung vo nhung loai dung cu đuoc đay đi boi luc nao đo, tren tat ca cac luc đia tru luc đia Uc (tuy lao van ton tai cung voi cung trong mot phan lich su Chau My, đang ke nhat la Mexico (lao đuoc su dung tu khi ten bo toc Nahuatl ra đoi) va cung voi nguoi Inuit).
Cung va mui ten xuat hien trong van hoa Ai Cap tu thoi ky Tien Trieu đai Ai Cap. Trong khu vuc Levant, cac mui ten trong Van hoa Natufian đuoc lam thang hon truoc, (nam 12.800–10.300 truoc khi can đai (la tinh tu nam 1950)). Nguoi Khiamian duoi thoi Đo đa moi cung voi nguoi Khiam co the gioi ve đau ten. Cac nen van minh trong Thoi co đien, đang ke nhat la Assyria, Hungary, Nha Achaemenes, Parthia, An Đo, Trieu Tien, Trung Quoc, va Nhat Ban co mot luong lon cung thu trong quan đoi. Thuat ban cung cua nguoi Phan, dhanurveda, đuoc biet đen nhu mon vo thuat.
Thuat ban cung đuoc phat trien manh o Chau A va trong gioi Đao Hoi. O Đong A, cac nen van minh Trieu Tien co đai, nhu Tan La (Shilla), Bach Te (Baekje), va Cao Cau Ly (Goguryeo) đuoc biet đen voi nhung cung thu tai ba. ngoai ra Trung Quoc, Nhat Ban cung phat trien manh ve thuat ban cung đe phuc vu cho nhu cau quan su, đac biet la cac dan toc du muc o phuong Bac Trung Quoc nhu nguoi Mong Co, nguoi Nu Chan/Man Chau, nguoi Khiet Đan, Đang Ha, Đot Quyet, Tay Vuc la nhung chien binh gioi ve thuat ban cung, đac biet la đoi ky xa cua nguoi Mong Co tung lam mua, lam gio tren the gioi vao the ky XIII voi tai cung ngua cua minh. O trung tam Đong bang chau A va chau My cac thanh vien nam cua cac bo toc nho la nhung cung thu cuoi ngua tai gioi.


Thang tram Voi su phat trien cua sung đan lam cung dan dan bi lang quen va khong su dung trong chien tranh nua. Mac du tinh trang ky thuat cong nghe len cao, nhung cung van đang đuoc phat trien va su dung trong mot so nuoc nhu Anh,Han Quoc, Trung Quoc, Nhat Ban, Tho Nhi Ky, Nguoi da đo, Ai Cap, va nhieu cho khac, hau het tat ca cac van hoa đa su dung sung(luc no moi ra), thi thuong bo mac cung. Cac loai sung so khai ban đau thi yeu the hon ve toc đo ban so voi cung, va khong the dung trong thoi tiet am uot. Nhung du gi đi nua, sung co the lam bi thuong nang hon. va ve mat chien thuat thi co chiem uu hon cung nhu co the đung ban đang sau nhung vat can, nhung nguoi nguoi su dung sung khong can phai đuoc huan luyen ki cang va khong can phai co co bap khoe nhu đe ban cung, điem đac trung co the xuyen lung qua cac ao giap. Cac đoi quan dung sung co the co loi the cao khi so luong linh cang nhieu, va hien nay cac cung thu chuyen nghiep rat hiem trong cac tran chien. Du vay, cung thu van co anh huong rong rai va đa co nhung buoc tien đang ke trong the ky 21. Cac phong tuc truyen thong cung van đuoc su dung trong the thao, va đi san o mot so noi.


Chu thich Tham khao Ford, Horace (1887) The Theory and Practice of Archery London: Longmans, Green
Elmer, Robert P. (Robert Potter) (1917) American Archery; a Vade Mecum of the Art of Shooting with the Long Bow Columbus, OH: National Archery Association of the United States
Hansard, George Agar (1841) The Book of Archery: being the complete history and practice of the art, ancient and modern... London: H. G. Bohn
Hargrove, Ely (1792) Anecdotes of Archery; from the earliest ages to the year 1791. Including an account of the most famous archers of ancient and modern times; with some curious particulars in the life of Robert Fitz-Ooth Earl of Huntington, vulgarly called Robin Hood.... York: printed for E. Hargrove, bookseller, Knaresbro' (later editions: York, 1845 and facsimile reprint, London: Tabard Press, 1970)
Heath, E. G. & Chiara, Vilma (1977) Brazilian Indian Archery: a preliminary ethno-toxological study of the archery of the Brazilian Indians. Manchester: Simon Archery Foundation
Klopsteg, Paul (1963) A Chapter in the Evolution of Archery in America Washington, DC: Smithsonian Institution
Lake, Fred & Wright, Hal (1974) A Bibliography of Archery: an indexed catalogue of 5,000 articles, books, films, manuscripts, periodicals and theses on the use of the bow for hunting, war, and recreation, from the earliest times to the present day. Manchester: Simon Archery Foundation
Morse, Edward (1922) Additional notes on arrow release Salem, Massachusetts: Peabody Museum
Pope, Saxton (1925) Hunting with the Bow and Arrow New York: G. P. Putnam's Sons
Pope, Saxton (1918) Yahi Archery Berkeley: University of California Press
Thompson, Maurice (1878) The Witchery of Archery: a Complete Manual of Archery New York: Scribner & Sons
The Traditional Bowyer's Bible. [Azle, TX]: Bois d'Arc Press; New York, N.Y.: Distributed by Lyons & Burford
The Traditional Bowyer's Bible; Volume 1. 1992. ISBN 1-58574-085-3
The Traditional Bowyer's Bible; Volume 2. 1992. ISBN 1-58574-086-1
The Traditional Bowyer's Bible; Volume 3. 1994. ISBN 1-58574-087-X; ISBN 1558213112
The Traditional Bowyer's Bible; Volume 4. The Lyons Press, 2008. ISBN 978-0-9645741-6-8


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