[Leo Todeschini]

I have been busy on this one for a while, well two years in the making actually.

This is a reproduction of a late 15thC Bavarian hunting crossbow that is owned by the Wallace Collection but due mainly to the limits of the materials I could get there are some differences.

The stock is ash and covered in bone that has been carved to replicate the St George and the Dragon theme with mythical beasts that the original exhibits. The bow is steel and covered in parchment, the string is linen and the nut is Ivory from a legal source as I could not get an antler crown big enough.

The front rest is missing and this will get fitted once I start test shooting, which will be after the cranequin is made as is the case for the bolt clip (missing from the original). The bow weight is a touch over 400lb.

The paint has been degraded similar to the original, but this will be repainted with full coverage on request of the new owner - a sad phrase 'new owner', as I would love to keep this one.......

The carving was done by a colleague of mine and all other work was done by myself.

Tod

[Ed T.]

Absolutely stunning! I can see why you would want to keep this one.

It looks like the prod is painted steel. Is that the case on the original you were working from?

Ed Thyberg

[Artis Aboltins]

Beautefull work! I would also be very unwilling to part with such fantastic work of art.

[Peter Johnsson]

Outstanding, Tod.
I am really happy to see this.
Incredible concept, dedication and execution.

Top quality work.

[Chad Arnow]

[Sam Haverkamp]

Leo,
Mind boggingly outstanding work. As with the original, it deserves to be in a museum.
WOW!
Sam

[Tim Lison]

Awesome! That is truly a masterpiece. It's new owner should be extremely happy!

[Chad Arnow]

I believe this is the original it's based on:

[Leo Todeschini]

Thanks for the the support, there were times when I was getting just a tad bored with it, so I am glad it was worthwhile.

Yes, the bow above is the one it was based on and I have a stack of pictures, that I of course am not allowed to post but Toby Capwell at the Wallace very generously let me handle the original. I actually can't thank him enough, as when I approached him for the pictures and told him I was planning to make a copy he said 'You can't possibly do that without handling the original so can you come in next Tuesday?' A very approachable guy. The other notable thing was that I went in during the recent refit and was shown into a back room; he opened the door and the room was like a jumble sale of medeival artefacts, to the point that when he sat me down at a desk he asked me to try not to kick the leg armour that was in the banana box under it - I dream about that room.

It was a very interesting bow though, the first impression was of weight, and that is the same of the repro I have made, the stock alone is 5Kg (12lb) and that is due to the bone. The other really interesting side to the original is its history that is evident in its repairs. The steel bow it has now is almost certainly not the original as it does not fit the recess and to be honest this type of bow was far more common with a composite bow, though the decoration is still very period.

The other side that is intrguing is the repairs. The front of the bow has sheared off, breaking under the bow meaning that during loading or aiming the bow slipped under the stock, presumably horrifically injuring the left arm of the user/loader and there is also a break through the stock near the cranequin lugs. In both cases the bow was refitted and rivetted using large steel rivets to reinforce. So even though the stock had snapped at the front, snapped at the back and had the bow replaced it was still of enough value to be worth saving.

Tod

[Jean Thibodeau]

Great work and fascinating stuff.

Just a technical question about usage: I'm just wondering what if anything keeps the bolt in place on the bow string and aligned trait for shooting as there seems to be noting save the groove in the lock " Nut " ( proper term ? ) that might hold on to the end of the bolt but the front of the bolt would be free to move to the right or left of centre I think ?

Would one load it with a bolt just before shooting and try to not move so that the bolt would fly trait or not fall off the top of the crossbow if one was moving around ?

[Joe Fults]

Simply freaking amazing.

I cannot begin to imagine how much time must have gone into that project.

[Leo Todeschini]

[Jean Thibodeau]

Thanks for the answer as I always wondered about this but never asked before.

A lot of these hunting crossbows seem to be missing this part or maybe it's that most books keep showing this same and
" famous " crossbow ? Will have to look more closely at any pics I have of different crossbows in my reference books.

[Leo Todeschini]

[David Evans]

I had a chance to handle this bow at TORM this weekend and I have to say that's it's even more stunning than the pictures give credit. It's an impressive piece with some real solid heft to it. I just can't believe that the skill sets exist out there to turn out pieces like this.

[Darrin Hughes]

Like David I was able to spend a bit of time with this 'bow at the market and I would agree that as is so often the case the pictures don't really do it justice. My initial impression from the photos was that it looked a little square and blocky, but this now seems to be the effect of a white object being photographed against a white background.
First hand this is much more sleek than it appears and the spine especially has a rather nice 'skittle' shape. The carving on the panels is nicely executed and the whole thing is very solid.

Cheers,
D.

btw, when it wasn't being viewed Tod had this chained up in a perspex display case. Probably the best secured item at the market.

[Glennan Carnie]

I've had the pleasure of holding Tod's crossbow at the weekend. It's a truly stunning piece of work. Very beautiful indeed.

[Ben Potter]

Thanks for posting the pics of the bow, it is beautiful.

I was wondering if you have any tricks for carving bone? I've had trouble with it chipping.

Thanks,

Ben

[Sean Flynt]

Tod:
Can you tell us about the basket-weave leather bit on the business end of the stock? That weave/knot is identical to that used on some German sword scabbards of the period and I've been trying to figure it out for ages.

[Leo Todeschini]