The musical bow is a simple string musical instrument part of a number of South African cultures, also found in other places in the world through the result of slave trade. It consists of a flexible, usually wooden, stick 1.5 to 10 feet (0.5 to 3 m) long, and strung end to end with a taut cord, usually metal. It can be played with the hands or a wooden stick or branch. Often, it is a normal archery bow used for music rather than as a weapon.