Ближний Восток и его соседи

g 192 h David Nicolle 71. These staves had a simple but geometric pattern on both the front, edges and, as seen here, on the back. In fact, the zigzag and arrow motifs bring to mind some Mamlūk furūsīyah military manuals. The method of applying this decoration has yet to be studied and published, but a close-up view looks almost like an appliqué or mosaic of strips of material, some very small and fine. (Author’s photograph; reportedly now in the National Museum store, Doha, Qatar). 72–74. Another medieval Middle Eastern crossbow stave, which is also thought to have come from the Euphrates hoard before it was sold as a job-lot to a London antiques dealer, is more damaged and less decorated. Indeed, it seems not to have been decorated at all, though it was clearly covered in bark or some similar material. As such it might represent the everyday weapons used by the garrison of a frontier fortress rather than a weapon intended for a member of the elite, or for use on parade. (G. Jenkinson collec- tion; G. Jenkinson’s photo).