Ottoman weapons  Military forces of the Ottoman Empire used a variety of weapons throughout the centuries. The armoury in Topkapı Palace has a large collection of which it shows select items. The Yatagan ("yatağan") makes its appearance in the second half of the 16th century, and is an infantry weapon in which the hilt is generally made of bone or ivory and the pommel is flared. Its short, slightly curved blade is sharp on one edge and comes to a fine point. This form continues unchanged until the end of the 19th century. The yatagan sword was widely used in both the Ottoman army and navy especially for the Janissaries as they were signature weapon for the corps. The Ottoman cavalry sabre or kilij is the Ottoman variant of the Turko-Mongol sabre originating in Central Asia. It is designed for the mounted close combat preferred by the Turkish and Mamluke troops. It was a one-handed saber with a slight curvature enough to cut and thrust effectively; Sharpened back edge at the final section of the blade known as "yalman" was specific to kilij. A (kılıç) consists of a blade which is usually grooved, a hilt, guard and scabbard. Its basic form is illustrated by the sword of Sultan Mehmed II, with its slightly curved blade that thickens at the back. During the reigns of Sultan Bayezid and Suleiman I, the Turkish sword attained its classic form, becoming shorter, lighter and straighter. There are three kinds of recurve bow : war ("tirkeş"), target ("puta"), and long-range ("menzil") bows. All three types were made of four materials: wood, horn, tendon and adhesive. A grip ("kabza") is located at the center of each bow. They are generally decorated in lacquer technique. The shaft of arrows was made of pine and the head of iron, brass, or bone. At the end of the arrow are feathers to stabilise flight and knotted nock ("gez") to hold the arrow firmly against the bowstring. Maces were blunt force weapons used for crushing blows against the enemy. These weapons were effective against armored troops, and typically were smooth or had 3-12 flanges or blades protruding from the top of the weapon. The start of the use of artillery in the Ottoman Army is not very definite. One of the arguments is that the Ottomans used cannons in the Battles of Kosovo (1389) and Nukap (1396) and most certainly by the 1420s.