Our incredible journey to document the world’s finest primitive bowyers continues to roll through Europe. After visiting with 3 European bowyers - Stefan Tim of Bamboo Bows in the Netherlands, Erich Streichsbier of Sparrow Bows in Austria, and Simon Kehl of selfbow.ch in Switzerland - we began to make our way to our Northern-most bowyer in Sweden.

We traveled by train from St Gallen, Switzerland, to Salzburg, Austria, where we spent 3 days visiting with a friend and exploring the beautiful city. From there we flew to Gothenburg, Sweden, which is the vibrant home of Volvo. Nearby is the small village of Bollebygd, home of Per Friden of Nordic Selfbows. We spent 3 days with Per carving a Swedish elm sapling flatbow. This high crowned bow is 70 inches nock to nock with cherry wood tip overlays. It is finished in Swedish style with a reindeer leather handle wrap and protected with boiled linseed oil. It draws 57 pounds at 29 inches.

Next we flew to the land of dragons, Ljubljana, Slovenia, where we enjoyed the charming city in the shadows of an 11th century castle, with quaint cafes and shops lining both sides of the Ljubljanica River. The river is traversed by numerous dramatic bridges including the Triple Bridge and the Dragon Bridge.

From Ljubljana we headed north to the famous Lake Bled with its own castle that earlier this year was home to a traditional bow exhibition and a traditional archery tournament. For us the visit was a stopping point on the way back to Austria to meet with our next bowyer.

In Millstatter See, Austria, at his beautiful lakeview home, we were welcomed by our newest addition to Project Quiver, Phil Rockhauser of Rockhauser Archery and his beautiful family. Over the next 3 days, while being spoiled with wonderful traditional food prepared by his wife, we carved a Mollegabet-inspired flatbow from red elm. This bow features stunning lines and a sleek profile. It is 68 inches nock to nock with self nocks and a jute handle wrap. Due to its short bending area, it has sinew reinforcements on each limb and draws 40 pounds at 29 inches.

Leaving Austria for the final time, we traveled by high speed train to visit Venice, Italy. After exploring the canals and tasting our first Italian gelato, we headed south to meet some friends on the Amalfi Coast, our base for 4 days of Mediterranean exploration and enjoyment.

For bowyer number 13, we chose as our base Salo, Italy, on Garda Lake, near the home and workshop of Enrico Maraggi of Arcaica Bows. Under the guidance of Enrico, we carved a pair of gorgeous black locust flatbows. The bow that will be featured in the book Quiver has an orange Italian leather handle and twin arrow passes, striking tagua nut tip overlays, and is 69 inches nock to nock. It draws 50 pounds at 29 inches and is finished with multiple coats of shellac. The second bow was not planned but came to be as the original stave twisted significantly after the bow was shaped out. Not knowing if it could be salvaged, we began another bow. After much steaming and heat treating, it came back into alignment and now shoots perfectly. It features the same specifications as above with a blue Italian leather handle and arrow passes.

The final product of Project Quiver will be a stunning coffee table book known as Quiver: The Art of Life through Bowcraft. This book will feature in-depth and intimate profiles of the world’s 15 best bowyers, showcasing the artistry of each through captivating narratives and beautiful imagery. Follow our journey to 10 countries on 4 continents on Instagram @projectquiver!

Top photo: The Amalfi Coast of Italy.

11th-13th bows of Project Quiver: (L to R) cherry wood nock of elm sapling bow from Nordic Selfbows, red elm Mollegabet-inspired flatbow from Rockhauser Archery, and black locust flatbow from Arcaica Bows.

Our Bowyers.
Pete Woodland, Canada
Jamie MacDonald, Canada
Ryan Gauthier, Canada
Jake Fenwick, Canada
Weylin Olive, USA
Correy Hawk, USA
Chuck Loeffler, USA
Nacho Marco, Spain
Stefan Tim, the Netherlands
Erich Streichsbier, Austria
Per Frieden, Sweden
Simon Kehl, Switzerland
Enrico Maraggi, Italy
Phil Rockhauser, Austria
Johnny Snyman, South Africa

Next.

We are leaving Europe behind for now but not for good. Soon we travel to Turkey to explore Istanbul, and from there we fly to Bloemfontein, South Africa, home to Johnny Snyman of Heartwood Bows. Then we head back to Europe for our final bowyer, Nacho Marco of Arcol Esqeula in Teruel, Spain.