I'm enquiring as I'm trying to ascertain what kind of bow is being described in Homer's Odyssey, specifically the bow used to kill the suitors. In a lot of depictions of the scene I see that a Scythian bow is portrayed.

Also I was wondering, how would this kind of bow be used if it were real? From the description in the story the bow was extremely difficult to string, so I imagine drawing back the bowstring would take immense strength, but the Greeks used a pinching grip on the arrow between two fingers didn't they? Which usually meant bows were weaker, so is Homer explaining this away with 'Oh he can draw it with a pinched grip because he is a Greek hero!' or is it because of a different drawing style entirely?