The bow of Odysseus is the weapon he left behind when he sailed for Troy. It is brought from the storeroom in Book 21 for the contest Penelope sets. None of the suitors can string it. Odysseus, still in beggar’s disguise, asks for a turn, warms and oils the wood, strings it in one easy motion, and sends the arrow through the aligned sockets of the twelve axes. Book 22 follows at once. The object is both the test of identity and the instrument of the household’s recovery. Butler’s translation keeps the physical actions — the handling, the oiling, the singing of the string — clearly present.
— Material culture —
Almost certainly a powerful composite or high-end self-bow of the period (horn, sinew, wood construction possible). Odysseus never took this bow to Troy; it was kept in a case in the storeroom with the polished spears. Stringing requires strength and knowledge of the weapon. In the contest Odysseus warms and oils the bow before stringing; the string is said to sing like a swallow. The arrow must pass through the sockets (or rings) of the twelve axes.
Books (Butler): 21, 22
Epithet: The contest bow