Pulling an arrow out of a body actually is REALLY difficult!

They don't leave cl ean wounds, and pulling one out generally causes significant damage (it's the sa me with bullets - most people who are shot and survive have the bullets left in their bodies). There were ways to remove an arrow, but they were generally too complex and invo lved to be performed in the field. Your options for dealing with an arrow in you r body were: Propulsion, whereby the embedded arrow was forced through the flesh thus creatin g an exit wound, then sealed with lard. (Chirurgia, Robert of Salerno, a contine ntal work written in 1180) Leave it in there, hope it heals over (King David II of Scotland was hit in the face by two arrows, his surgeons managed to remove one but the other remained em bedded) Saw off the shaft, then leave for 8 to14 days until the wound becomes full of pus . The arrowhead could then be lifted out without much trouble, the site scalded w ith boiling oil and a branding iron used. (Heinrich von Pfolspeunt, 15th Century ) Stretch the wound by plugging it with probes of elder pith soaked in honey. Then , using a special pair of tongs, reach into the centre of the arrowhead and slow ly wiggle it free. Wash with white wine, then apply a gauze soaked in barley, ho ney and turpentine. Later, the wound is washed and sealed with hot plaster to pr event "spasms" - probably tetanus. As used on King Henry V. (John Bradmore, Phil omena, c1411.)