Bowstring Guard

2 19/32 x 1 21/32 x 9/16 in. (6.6 x 4.2 x 1.4 cm)

This object has the following keywords:

• guards - Devices fixed to the handles of edged weapons to protect the user's hand.
• Native American - Typically reserved to refer narrowly to the cultures of the native peoples of the United States and Canada, excluding the Eskimos and Aleuts. For the indigenous peoples of Canada use the term "First Nations." For the broader concept of the cultures of any native peoples of Central America, South America, North America, or the West Indies who are considered to belong to the Mongoloid division of the human species, use "Amerindian (culture)."
• North American - Refers to the cultures of the continent of North America, which is bounded by the Atlantic Ocean, the Pacific Ocean, the Arctic Circle, and Central America. In classifications schemes based on physical geography, Central America, and North America are parts of the same continent.
• soapstone - A very soft rock composed primarily of hydrated magnesium silicate. It is easily cut and has been used for carvings since ancient times. It is usually a white, grayish green, brown or in rare cases, red or black. The stones were carved for bowls, boxes, and small objects such as figurines, beads, seals, amulets, and scarabs. In modern construction, it is used for laboratory sinks, bench tops, and electrical panels. Native soapstone is so soft it can be scratched with a fingernail, but baking results in dehydration and hardening of the stone. Some ancient soapstone carvings were glazed then fired, which produced the mineral enstatite, hard enough to scratch glass.
• Southeastern Native American styles - Styles belonging to Southeastern Native American cultures.
• stone - General term for rock that has been cut, shaped, crushed, or otherwise formed for use in construction or other purposes. Includes the specific archaeological and anthropological sense of individual stones which may be decorated or ornamented and which may be used in ritual contexts. These are usually not carved or dressed, and so differ from sculptures made from stone.

This object is a member of the following portfolios: