Arrow An arrow is a shafted projectile that is shot with a bow . It predates recorded history and is common to most cultures . An arrow usually consists of a shaft with an arrowhead attached to the front end , with fletchings and a nock at the other . History . The oldest evidence of stone - tipped projectiles , which may or may not have been propelled by a bow ( c . f . atlatl ) , dating to c . 64 , 000 years ago , were found in Sibudu Cave , South Africa . The oldest evidence of the use of bows to shoot arrows dates to about 10 , 000 years ago ; it is based on pinewood arrows found in the Ahrensburg valley north of Hamburg . They had shallow grooves on the base , indicating that they were shot from a bow . The oldest bow so far recovered is about 8 , 000 years old , found in the Holmegård swamp in Denmark . Archery seems to have arrived in the Americas with the Arctic small tool tradition , about 4 , 500 years ago . Size . Arrow sizes vary greatly across cultures , ranging from eighteen inches to five feet ( 45 cm to 150 cm ) . However , most modern arrows are to ; most war arrows from an English ship sunk in 1545 were . Very short arrows have been used , shot through a guide attached either to the bow ( an " overdraw " ) or to the archer ' s wrist ( the Turkish " siper " ) . These may fly farther than heavier arrows , and an enemy without suitable equipment may find himself unable to return them . Shaft . The shaft is the primary structural element of the arrow , to which the other components are attached . Traditional arrow shafts are made from lightweight wood , bamboo or reeds , while modern shafts may be made from aluminium , carbon fibre reinforced plastic , or a combination of materials . Such shafts are typically made from an aluminium core wrapped with a carbon fibre outer . The stiffness of the shaft is known as its spine , referring to how little the shaft bends when compressed . Hence , an arrow which bends less is said to have more spine . In order to strike consistently , a group of arrows must be similarly spined . " Center - shot " bows , in which the arrow passes through the central vertical axis of the bow riser , may obtain consistent results from arrows with a wide range of spines . However , most traditional bows are not center - shot and the arrow has to deflect around the handle in the archer ' s paradox ; such bows tend to give most consistent results with a narrower range of arrow spine that allows the arrow to deflect correctly around the bow . Higher draw - weight bows will generally require stiffer arrows , with more spine ( less flexibility ) to give the correct amount of flex when shot . GPI rating . The weight of an arrow shaft can be expressed in GPI ( Grains Per Inch ) . The length of a shaft in inches multiplied by its GPI rating gives the weight of the shaft in grains . For example , a shaft that is 30 inches long and has a GPI of 9 . 5 weighs 285 grains , or about 18 . 468 grams . This does not include the other elements of a finished arrow , so a complete arrow will be heavier than the shaft alone . Footed arrows . Sometimes a shaft will be made of two different types of wood fastened together , resulting in what is known as a footed arrow . Known by some as the finest of wood arrows , footed arrows were used both by early Europeans and Native Americans . Footed arrows will typically consist of a short length of hardwood near the head of the arrow , with the remainder of the shaft consisting of softwood . By reinforcing the area most likely to break , the arrow is more likely to survive impact , while maintaining overall flexibility and lighter weight . Arrowhead . The arrowhead or projectile point is the primary functional part of the arrow , and plays the largest role in determining its purpose . Some arrows may simply use a sharpened tip of the solid shaft , but it is far more common for separate arrowheads to be made , usually from metal , horn , or some other hard material . Arrowheads are usually separated by function : There are two main types of broadheads used by hunters : The fixed - blade and the mechanical types . While the fixed - blade broadhead keeps its blades rigid and unmovable on the broadhead at all times , the mechanical broadhead deploys its blades upon contact with the target , its blades swinging out to wound the target . The mechanical head flies better because it is more streamlined , but has less penetration as it uses some of the kinetic energy in the arrow to deploy its blades . Arrowheads may be attached to the shaft with a cap , a socketed tang , or inserted into a split in the shaft and held by a process called hafting . Points attached with caps are simply slid snugly over the end of the shaft , or may be held on with hot glue . Split - shaft construction involves splitting the arrow shaft lengthwise , inserting the arrowhead , and securing it using a ferrule , sinew , or wire . Fletchings . Fletchings are found at the back of the arrow and act as airfoils to provide a small amount of force used to stabilize the flight of the arrow . They are designed to keep the arrow pointed in the direction of travel by strongly damping down any tendency to pitch or yaw . Some cultures , for example most in New Guinea , did not use fletching on their arrows . Fletchings are traditionally made from feather s ( often from a goose or turkey ) bound to the arrow ' s shaft , but are now often made of plastic ( known as " vanes " ) . Historically , some arrows used for the proofing of armour used copper vanes . Flight archers may use razor blades for fletching , in order to reduce air resistance . With conventional three - feather fletching , one feather , called the " cock " feather , is at a right angle to the nock , and is normally nocked so that it will not contact the bow when the arrow is shot . Four - feather fletching is usually symmetrical and there is no preferred orientation for the nock ; this makes nocking the arrow slightly easier . Artisans who make arrows by hand are known as " fletchers , " a word related to the French word for arrow , " flèche " . This is the same derivation as the verb " fletch " , meaning to provide an arrow with its feathers . Glue and / or thread are the main traditional methods of attaching fletchings . A " fletching jig " is often used in modern times , to hold the fletchings in exactly the right orientation on the shaft while the glue hardens . Whenever natural fletching is used , the feathers on any one arrow must come from the same side of the bird . The slight twist in natural feathers then makes the arrow rotate in flight , which increases accuracy . Artificial " helical " fletchings have the same effect . Most arrows will have three fletches , but some have four or even more . Fletchings generally range from two to six inches ( 152 mm ) in length ; flight arrows intended to travel the maximum possible distance typically have very low fletching , while hunting arrows with broadheads require long and high fletching to stabilize them against the aerodynamic effect of the head . Fletchings may also be cut in different ways , the two most common being " parabolic " ( i . e . a smooth curved shape ) and " shield " ( i . e . shaped as one - half of a very narrow shield ) cut . A flu - flu is a form of fletching , normally made by using long sections of full length feathers taken from a turkey , in most cases six or more sections are used rather than the traditional three . Alternatively two long feathers can be spiraled around the end of the arrow shaft . The extra fletching generates more drag and slows the arrow down rapidly after a short distance , about 30 m or so . Flu - Flu arrows are often used for hunting birds , or for children ' s archery , and can also be used to play Flu - Flu Golf . Nocks . The nock is a notch in the rearmost end of the arrow . It serves to keep the arrow in place on the string as the bow is being drawn . Nocks may be simple slots cut in the back of the arrow , or separate pieces made from wood , plastic , or horn that are then attached to the end of the arrow . Modern nocks , and traditional Turkish nocks , are often constructed so as to curve around the string or even pinch it slightly , so that the arrow is unlikely to slip off .