Thumb ring

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This article is about the protective archery equipment. For the ornamental jewelry item sometimes worn on the thumb, see Ring (jewellery).
Thumb ring made from a plastic billiard ball
Thumb ring made from a plastic billiard ball

A thumb ring is a piece of equipment designed to protect the thumb during archery. This is a ring of horn, wood, ivory, metal, plastic, glass or stone which fits over the end of the thumb, coming to rest at the outer edge of the outer joint. A flat area extends from the ring to protect the pad of the thumb from the bowstring; this may be supplemented by a leather extension. Many surviving thumbrings are very ornate, some are too heavily ornamented to be usable. These must be intended for display only. The author of "Arab Archery" refers to rings as being usually made of leather.[1] Possibly, most actual archers historically used tabs of leather, much cheaper and easier to make, for this purpose.

When drawing a bow using a thumb draw, the thumb is hooked around the bowstring just beneath the arrow and braced with the first (sometimes second) finger. The bowstring rests against the inner pad of the archer's thumb,and the thumb ring protects the skin. The bowstring rests against the flat of the ring when the bow is drawn. This technique is often referred to as the "Mongolian Release" or the "Mongolian Draw". Today, thumb rings are used by archers practicing styles from most of Asia and some regions of northern Africa. Ishi, the "last wild American Indian", used a thumb draw, but no skin protection.

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  1. ^ Arab Archery. An Arabic manuscript of about A.D. 1500 "A book on the excellence of the bow & arrow" and the description thereof. Translated and edited by Nabih Amin Faris and Robert Potter Elmer. Princeton University Press, 1945. http://www.sacred-archery.com/arab%20archery%20anno%20domini%201500.pdf