Original German Bavarian 17th Century Bone Inlaid Crossbow – Foot Bow Original Items

Original Item. One-of-a-Kind. This is a phenomenal late 16th or early 17th Century German crossbow (foot bow) mounted with a hand forged iron lathe/prod, a vertebrae nut, a horn sight, bound with twisted gut string. The bow is constructed of fruitwood with inlaid bone on the top & bottom, without any markings to be found. This stupendous piece retains its original thick bowstring which has lost most of its elasticity. The design of this crossbow leads us to believe it to be German, and likely Bavarian.

The stock measures 26½” from the back to the front of the stirrup, and the lathe/prod has a span of approximately 21”. The crossbow may be missing a few pieces, so we cannot guarantee functionality, but we would not recommend firing a 500+ year old crossbow either way.

This type of bow was also called a foot bow, because it has a stirrup at the front of the bow, into which a man entered with his foot while tensioning with the windlass; in the lower part of the shaft, iron pins protrude on both sides, on which the winch to be used got its hold. This example has a small notch in which the bowstring is to be brought back, with a locking nut under the stock to lock it in place. When fully functional, the trigger would have released the bow-string, firing the projectile. This example has a folding sight which is retained by a small iron swivel rod screwed into the top of the stock.

The long iron trigger-guard on this example appears to have been glued back into place at one point, and being that this is what the crossbow rests on when sat down, it’s easy to see why it would’ve broken off in the first place. The back of the stock incorporates a cheek rest for the shooter, which still functions well.

The condition of the crossbow is overall great, considering its age of 500+ years. The strings near the very front of the crossbow have begun heavily fraying as shown, and as a result the stirrup ring is a bit loose. The stock appears to have been painted, but we are unsure of when this would have been.

This is one of the most beautiful crossbows we have ever offered, with its very crude but inspired design that has kept it intact for well over 500 years. Comes ready for further research and display!