page_title: History of archery
section_title: Mesopotamia
hierarchical_section_title: History of archery / Ancient history / Mesopotamia
caption_attribution_description: English: Archer wearing feather headdress. Alabaster. From Nineveh (Kuyunjik), Iraq. Reign of AshurbanipaI, 668-627 BCE. The Burrell Collection, Glasgow, UK.
context_page_description: Archery, or the use of bow and arrows, was developed by the end of the Upper Paleolithic. Archery has been an important military and hunting skill for over 10,000 years and figures prominently in the mythologies of many cultures. Archers, whether on foot, in chariots or mounted on horses were a major part of most military forces until they began being gradually supplemented, then replaced, by firearms in the Late Middle Ages and in the early modern period. Gunpowder, which was first developed in China in the 9th century AD, was initially used to enhance projectile weapons including arrows. Firearms diffused throughout Eurasia by the gunpowder empires, gradually reducing the importance of archery in warfare.
  Nonetheless, archery is still practiced today, including in the training regime of certain special forces. It also continues to be a popular sport, most commonly in the form of target archery, but in some places also for hunting.
context_section_description: The Assyrians and Babylonians extensively used the bow and arrow for hunting and warfare. The empires in ancient Mesopotamia formed the first standing armies used exclusively for warfare. This included soldiers trained and employed as archers. The archers served as an integral division of the military and was used on foot and on chariots. 
  The Chariot warriors of the Kassites relied heavily on the bow. The Nuzi texts detail the bows and the number of arrows assigned to the chariot crew. Archery was essential to the role of the light horse-drawn chariot as a vehicle of warfare. 
  The Old Testament has multiple references to archery as a skill identified with the ancient Hebrews. Xenophon describes long bows used to great effect in Corduene.
  Three-bladed (trilobate) arrowheads have been found in the United Arab Emirates, dated to 100BC-150AD.
caption: Archer wearing feather headdress. Alabaster. From Nineveh, Iraq. Reign of Ashurbanipal II, 668–627 BC. The Burrell Collection, Glasgow, UK
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