"dingin doun the doo" at Kilwinning

At Kilwinning, prior to the Papingo round, a competition is shot at the butts. The Butt Round is six dozen arrows at 30 yards towards a nine inch target with three concentric rings. The scores from that sets the order to be followed in the papingo competition, with each archer in turn having one arrow at the bird starting with the highest scorer. The papingo is on a horizontal pole sticking out 3 metres(10 feet) from the Kilwinning Abbey tower and 35 metres (116 feet) up. Archers must stand with on foot on the Abbey steps while they take their shot at the bird. Once the bird has been shot down it is replaced on its pole and the wings are loosened and the hitting of each wing is rewarded with a rosette. If, after two hours shooting, the Papingo has not been knocked off its perch then the result is recorded as "The bird flew" and neither trophy nor rosettes are awarded.

It is customary for the Club to have an annual Captaincy Shoot currently held in June and an open shoot in August. Originally the Club Captain was the first to shoot the Papingo of its perch, but nowadays the Captaincy is awarded to the highest scorer at The Butt Round. Whilst archers are allowed to shoot The Butt Round with either recurve or longbow they must shoot the papingo with longbow and arrows with a rubber blunt end both of which the Club can supply.

The Captain is presented with a Crystal Rose Bowl and the first to hit the "Bird" is now presented with The Tower (or John Walker) Trophy which was made by John Walker in 1950. Competitors then retire to enjoy the Captaincy Dinner. It used to be the custom that the Captain paid not only for drinks but the dinner and a ball for the Society members and their partners, a custom that fell into abeyance quite some time ago as the risk of this expense put off many from competing.

An Archer's Register of the 1860's says of the Kilwinning 'Papingo' Society "An old habit with this society is to shoot at a popinjay carved of wood, and fixed at what would now be considered a very lofty elevation. This wooden bird, about the size of a pigeon, is fixed on a pole projecting from the top of the church tower, and the archer, placing his foot against the building at its base, discharges his arrow perpendicularly, the object being to knock off one of the wings of the bird. Great care is necessary in the conduct of this pastime, or the upward gazers might make disagreeable acquaintance with the descending shaft.". Kilwinning Archers website

The Papingo Arrow

The famous Kilwinning Silver Arrow was first presented in 1724 and kept by the gentleman donating it, David Muir of Kilwinning. The next year Alexander Baillie, a Glasgow merchant was also awarded a silver arrow, but he agreed it should be the perpetual trophy, and that every captain should be its custodian for his year of victory and attach to the arrow a gold or silver medallion bearing his name and the date he won on one side, and his crest, if any, on the other.

Over the years the trophy has had a bow and crossed arrows added to it to accommodate all the medals. Nowadays the trophy is so valuable it is held securely by the local council rather than being displayed by each Captain who is presented with a perpetual crystal rose bowl instead.

The archers are wearing the traditional Stewarton Bunnet (that's the Scots for a bonnet) and the Club Captain is seen wearing a traditional sash which is called The Benn.

GNAS Popinjay

Modern popinjay is another version of this vertical archery and is included in the GNAS rules. The GNAS Popinjay rules are based on a mast that was made by an enterprising archer from a surplus U.S. Army wireless aerial. This mast is no longer in existence so the rules are somewhat unique!

Efforts to track down popinjay in Britain other than the ancient Scottish tradition have unearthed mention of one Club in England that include Popinjay in a 4 discipline Easter shoot each year.

The mast photograped is from a club in Bruges, Belgium, and shows the classic roost of birds arranged in rows with the "cock" at the top "hens" in the row below and then some rows of smaller "chickens". If you click on the picture you will get a larger image, these birds are made from coloured bottle brushes.

It is interesting to note that, before International Rules were agreed the 1920 Olympic Games held in Antwerp included 'le tir au coq' for the men.

History of Popinjay

Popinjay is a very ancient form of archery and there is evidence that medieval archers practiced it as an alternative to butt practise. The English word "Popinjay" is a corruption of "papegai" the old French name for a parrot. It is thought that its origins lie in the practise of shooting at a stuffed bird set high on the topmost parapet of a church tower, but other think that it was a naval pastime and sailors shot at birds resting on the ships yardarms.

It is still popular across much of Northern Europe and shot either with crossbows, compound bows or traditional bows..There the Guilds and Societies have dedicated grounds and always at least 2 masts so a choice can be made for safety if it is windy. Usually grounds have a shelter near the masts for archers to wait their turn in. Some shoot with masts that are set out with several rows of "birds" and the masts are counterbalance so swing down for the birds to be set up; the birds can traditionally be made of wood with coloured feathers but a modern alternative is to use dyed bottle brushes! Some Guilds use masts that just have a round disc at the top that can be dislodged and then set back in place by pulling a cable on the mast. Many of the Guilds date back to the 1800's and continue the historic tradition of annual parades in their home towns and a large competition and social called a Schützenfest that the countries take a turn at hosting.

The picture is of an archer taking aim at a club in Bruges. You should note that the compound bow is fitted with a special arrow rest that holds the arrow safely in place, and you can clearly see the rubber blunt on the end of the arrow.

This page contributed by Willie McGill ASKA, Bruges photographs by Muriel Kirkwood