The Korean Bow ( hanja: , or horn bow) is a water buffalo horn-based composite reflex bow, standardized centuries ago from a variety of similar weapons in earlier use. Due to its long use by Koreans, it is also known as Guk Gung ( hanja: , or national bow). The Korean bow utilizes a thumb draw and therefore employing the use of a thumb ring is quite common. The Korean thumb ring is somewhat different from the Manchu, Mongol, or the Turkic Thumb Ring, as it comes in two styles, male and female. Male thumb rings are shaped with a small protrusion that sticks out that the bowstring hooks behind (similar to a release aid), while the female thumb ring simply covers the front joint of the thumb as protection from getting blisters (pulling heavy bows repetitively with only the thumb can easily cause blisters to form on the pad of the thumb). Gukgung, , sometimes also romanized as goong sool, literally means "techniques of the bow", "way of the bow", or "skill with the bow". It is also referred to as Korean traditional archery. Gungdo, , is another epithet for traditional Korean archery, as used by Koreans. History of military origin and usage The reflex bow had been the most important weapon for Koreans in wars with Chinese dynasties and nomadic peoples, recorded from the 1st century BC. Legend says the first king and founder of the Goguryeo, Go Jumong, was a master of archery, able to catch 5 flies with one arrow. Bak Hyeokgeose, the first king of the Silla, was also said to be a skilled archer. The ancient Chinese gave the people of the North-East (eastern Siberia, Manchuria and the Korean Peninsula) the name of Dongyi () being a combination of the two characters for "large" (大) and "bow" (弓). However, it also need to be noted that the term was widely applied by the Chinese to note any foreign tribes, and originally their own, associated with large bows. Yi Seonggye, the founding king of Joseon was known to have been a master archer. In a battle against Japanese pirates, Seonggye, assisted by Yi Bangsil, killed the young samurai commander "Agibaldo" with two successive arrows, one arrow knocking out his helmet, with the second arrow entering his mouth. In his letter to General Choi Young, Seonggye lists as one of five reasons not to invade Ming