Tuesday 13 October 2020

Cutlery

My wargame room's back wall has a new look. I've moved some pictures around and hung up some recently acquired cutlery. 

The question is, do we still allow Peter J. to stand on that side of the table in any game involving dice?


Only the sword bayonet is original; the others are historically accurate 'museum quality' replicas, whatever that means  - does it mean they can sell them in the museum shop? They are all, according to their blurb, hand forged EN45 high carbon spring steel with a full tang.

Cutlery, left to right: 

  • French chasseurs sword bayonet, dated 1849. My dad was given this in lieu of payment for a cheeky plumbing job he did in the late 50s. Given that he found it in the attic of a house in Bradford whilst doing the job, and the old boy there had lived in the house for 50 years not knowing of  its existence, I suspect it had been brought back from the Crimean War as a souvenir, put in the attic, and forgotten about.
  • Medieval broadsword, 12th century. Having obtained this sword I know a lot more about 11th and 12th century sword pommels than I did before. I'd be careful about asking me about them.
  • English short sword, 1660. Rapiers were found to be too long and cumbersome for general everyday wear so, by the reign of Charles II, gentlemen tended to carry shorter swords like this one about the place, as macho fashion items as much as for defence (blade length is 33") .
  • French Musketeer's (as per "The Three...") swept hilt rapier, 1590. You have a reach of over six feet with this thing and, considering its length, it is remarkably well balanced. It's basically a stiletto dagger with a 40" blade: Its effective stroke is the thrust.
  • English swept hilt rapier, 1640. This sword is very heavy. It has the same blade length as the earlier French version but the blade is a third wider and less tapered towards the point. Apparently, by the time of the ECW, English rapiers had become much heavier and robust to make them better for cutting strokes, and to cope with the general rigours of war. In any event, you would need to be built like an ox to wield it effectively - it's a real muscle burner.

3 comments:

David said...

Nice additions to the wargame room's ambiance.

Gonsalvo said...

Quite a pointed post. I'm envious!

Mike B said...

Very jealous of your hobby space!