Home Page

Stefan's Florilegium

Swords-bib



This document is also available in: text or RTF formats.

Swords-bib - 12/30/01

 

A bibliography on swords and sword construction by Master Magnus Malleus.

 

NOTE: See also the files: swords-msg, scabbards-msg, leather-msg, knife-sheaths-msg, swordcare-msg, woodworking-msg, wood-msg, tools-msg, lea-tanning-msg.

 

************************************************************************

NOTICE -

 

This file is a collection of various messages having a common theme that

I  have collected from my reading of the various computer networks. Some

messages date back to 1989, some may be as recent as yesterday.

 

This file is part of a collection of files called Stefan's Florilegium.

These files are available on the Internet at: http://www.florilegium.org

 

I  have done  a limited amount  of editing. Messages having to do  with

seperate topics  were sometimes split into different files and sometimes

extraneous information was removed. For instance, the  message IDs  were

removed to save space and remove clutter.

 

The comments made in these messages are not necessarily my viewpoints. I

make  no claims  as  to the accuracy  of  the information  given  by the

individual authors.

 

Please  respect the time  and efforts of  those who have written  these

messages. The  copyright status of these messages  is  unclear  at this

time. If  information  is published  from  these  messages, please give

credit to the orignator(s).

 

Thank you,

    Mark S. Harris                  AKA:  THLord Stefan li Rous

    mark.s.harris at motorola.com            stefan at florilegium.org

************************************************************************

 

Date: Fri, 14 Dec 2001 14:32:31 -0500

From: rmhowe <MMagnusM at bellsouth.net>

To: - Atlantia <atlantia at atlantia.sca.org>,

   "- Stephan's Florilegium" <stefan at texas.net>,

   - Regia Anglorum - North America <list-regia-us at netword.com>

Subject: Making a sword

 

Melanie Wilson wrote:

> As the greatest keeper of booklists I know ;) have you a list of

> how to books etc on Dark Age swords at all ? - Mel

 

Okay, this is a mixed reply with a couple of older postings inserted:

 

Probably the best single article. I obtained it a short while ago:

Anstee, J. W.: A Study in Pattern Welding; in Medieval Archaeology 5,

        1961, pp. 71-93, with Plates IV-XVI depicting the welding

        experiments and microstructure as well as a finished

        reproduction sword, sheath, belt, buckle and chape. Time

        and methods of forging and making the components are discussed

        as is a special mixture involving pigeon droppings (39.5%

        by weight), plain flour (21.5), honey (14.5), olive oil

        (2), milk 22.5) - Used 3 1/2 lbs, 1.6kg. Comparison of various

        swords, provenances given, good bibiography of comparative work,

        diagrams of welding processes attempted.

xxxxxxxxx

Piggot, Stuart: Swords and Scabbards of the British Early Iron Age;

Paper No. 1 from the Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society for

1950, Vol. XXVI, pp 1-28, with extensive bibliography.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Davidson, Hilda Ellis: The Sword in Anglo-Saxon England, Oxford, 1961.

xxxxxxxxx

The following two I have not seen yet:

 

Behmer, Elis: Das Zweischneidige Schwert der Germanishcehn

Völkswanderungzeit; Stockholm 1939.

 

Leppaaho, J.: Spateisenzeitliche Waffen aus Finnland (Helsinki 1964).

Supposed to be quite unusual.

xxxxxxxxxxxx

 

These I have:

 

Oakeshott, R. Ewart: The Archaeology of Weapons: London 1960.

 

[Oakeshott, R. Ewart: Records of the Medieval Sword; Paperback,

320pp., ISBN: 0851155669, Publisher: Boydell & Brewer, Inc.,

Pub. Date: July  2001; Edition Desc: REPRINT  306 pages.

Covers Sword styles X - XXII. Covers 1050-1520 AD.]

Has an article (not by him) on making non-pattern welded swords

in it, and things like pommels and guards.

 

[Oakeshott, R. Ewart: Some Medieval Sword Pommels: An Essay

in Analysis; Journal of the British Archaeological Association

14, 1951, pp.47-62 and plate XXVII, with 27 in text line drawings

of swords, pommels, scabbards from illustrations and sculpture.]

 

I also have

Oakeshott, R. Ewart:  The Sword in the Age of Chivalry; London,

1964, 2nd edition, London 1981.

and his European Arms and Armour.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Scull, Christopher, with many assorted other authors: Excavation

and Survey at Watchfield, 1983-32; Arch. Journal 149, 1992,

pp.124-281. Includes many photographs and drawings of an early

Anglo-Saxon Cemetery and it’s inhabitants and their possessions

from the Vale of the White Horse.

        Some finds are neolithic to medieval, one is 1700’s

knife handle, other finds include glass and bone beads, brooches,

weapons, shield rivets, handles and umbos, a deteriorated leather

scabbard and a scale case made of leather with scales and weights

and inscription, cauldron bits and fittings, tweezers, knives,

buckles, saucer brooches and one’s construction, ear spoon,

square headed brooches, amber, dress pins, skeletal remains with

analysis, remains of horn handle for sword,  electron pictures

of grooves cut in carnelian by a bow drill, reconstructions of

the pattern welded sword blades (similar to Sutton Hoo but not

quite as complex, nine page bibliography. Most things are drawn

and not photographed in the text. Excellent coverage of most

materials and discussions of specific fields of items by specialists.

xxxxxxxxxx

Siddorn, J. Kim: Viking Weapons and Warfare; Tempus Publishing Ltd,

The Mill, Brimscombe Port, Stroud, GL5 2QG. FP2000 UK,

lSBN 0752414194, 160 pages, 88 line drawings, 31 colour plates,

in English. UK, £15.99 USA, $26.99. (Got an excellent review in

Minerva, Sept/Oct 2000 issue. Minerva is an English world-view

archaeology magazine.) Gee, Imagine that Kim. ;)

xxxxxxxxxx

Sim, David: Beyond the Bloom, Bloom Refining and Iron Artifact

Production in the Roman World; edited by Isabel Ridge, BAR

International Series 725, 1998, 155pp., published by Archaeopress,

PO Box 920, Oxford OX2 7YH England, printed by the Basingstoke

Press, ISBN 0860549011, available from Hadrian Books, Ltd.,

122 Banbury Road, Oxford, OX2 7BP, England.

"The major part of this work details practical experiments that

replicate the working environment of a Roman blacksmith. The

tools and equipment used were as far as possible copies of Roman

originals. A record was kept of time taken to turn raw bloom iron

into workable iron and the amount of fuel and other materials

consumed. Similar records were made of the times to make Roman

iron artifacts together with the amount of metal and fuel

consumed."

   Various ancient to 16th C. forges, furnaces, hearths, tools,

weapons, etc. are depicted. Examples would be drawplates, a

mandrel / die used to make solid rings for mail, pattern welded

blade, pilum, pole lathe, stylus, hammer head, nails, ballista

bolt head, fire arrow head, bow drill, swages. A three page glossary

and a three page bibliography are included. For some reason the

author also includes quite a bit about firescale including many

pictures of it...

xxxxxxxxx

Smith, Cyril Stanley: A History of Metallography. The Development

of Ideas of the Structure of Metals before 1890. Cambridge & London:

M.I.T. Press, 1988. First Paperback Edition (1st = 1960). [xxviii],

297 pp; 110 illus.; 11 tables.

Includes the Merovingian Patterned Welded Sword and various articles

on Damascus blade making and attempts of Europeans to replicate

Damascus.

xxxxxxxxxxx

The Vikings! Norse Film and Pageant Society Books:

Parker, David E., and E. Rachel Lowerson: Anglo Saxon Costume, Arms

and Armour; The Vikings! Society Handbook, 1992, 80pp., Contents:

Section 1). The evidence;

        v.) Arms and Armour: a.) the shield, b.) helmets, c.) armour,

               d.) the spear, e.) the seax, f.) seax sheaths, g.) swords,

               h.) scabbards, i.) axes;  

        vi.) Adaptations: a.) ninth century, b.) eleventh century,

               c.) adaptations for combatant women;  vii.) Suggestions

               for further reading:

        vi.) Arms and Armour: a.) introduction, b.) armour,

               c.) the byrnie, d.) alternatives to mail,

               e.) the helmet, f.) the shield, g.) the spear, h.) the seax,

               i.) the sword, j.) the axe, k.) banners,

               l.) missle weapons;

 

Scott, Russell: Unsheathing the Dark Age Scabbard, The Medieval Scabbard

in Manuscript Art and Archaeological Finds; No date, 56 page,

paperbound.

 

Good luck getting these. Took me two years through an intermediary.

Norse Film and Pageant Society / The Vikings - on the web.

REALLY slow on responding to inquiries - if they do at all.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Ward Perkins, J B.: London Museum Medieval Catalogue 1940. Anglia

        Publishing, 1993. Catalogue of the wide-ranging collection:

        weapons, tools, horse furniture, pendants, keys, purses,

        weights, lighting, household utensils, plate, pottery,

        tiles, pilgrim souvenirs, buckles, chapes, figures, wood,

        bone, ivory, glass, pipeclay, whetstones, seals. 322pp,

        illustrated boards, profusely illustrated

        with photos and drawings. New. Book # 16 £24.50 (approx. $38.89)

        Anglia Publishing , Unit T, Dodnash Priory Farm Hazel Shrub,

        Bentley, Ipswich, United Kingdom , IP9 2DF  Phone 01473 311138

        / Fax 01473 312288, anglia at anglianet.co.uk  ('99)

xxxxxxxxxxxx

Evison, V: Anglo-Saxon Finds near Rainham, Essex, with a Study of Glass

        Drinking-horns; Archaeologia 96, 1955. 38pp, 12figs, 11b/w pls,

        pp. 159-98 and plates LIX-LXX, last plate is the Torrs Chamfrein

        which uses drinking horn ends as horns. A-S Square-headed brooch,

        glass whorls, girdle hanger, coopered bronze-bound drinking vessels,

        diagrams of pattern welded swords, shield bosses, pottery cups (4),

        spearheads, round mouthed pitchers, pots, gold pendant, 36 views

        of mostly different drinking horns.   

xxxxxxxxxxxxx

Grove, L.R.A.: Five Viking-Period Swords;  Offprint from the Antiquaries

        Journal, July 1938, Vol. XVII, No. 3, pp.251-7, depicts scale

        drawings of four swords from the Mouth of the River Kennet;

        Reading; Tilehurst, Berkshire; Twyford, Berkshire; and Tenfoot

        Bridge, Shifford; with a drawing and photograph of a sculptured

        sword in scabbard from Ebberston, N.R. Yorkshire, north wall of

        Chancel, scaled. Scabbard appears to be leather covered, with

        four incised lines down most of the side, a diagonal strap

        running about and inch and a half wide from two to three inches

        down from the scabbard mouth which has a Y shaped decoration

        or tie between the strap and the mouth. The chape appears to be

        a simple wrap-around metal piece in an I shape with the cusps of

        the I wrapped a bit around front and back.

xxxxxxxxxxxx

Kolchin, B.A., Wrote a book on russian medieval metalwork that

I have yet to obtain a hardback copy of that included information

on blade welding, can't recall swords specifically. Most of his

work concerns Novgorod.

 

Artsikhovskii, A.V. & Kolchin, B.A. (eds.): Trudy Novgorodskoi

        Arkheologicheskoi Ekspeditsii. Tom II. (Materialy i

        Issledovaniia po Arkheologii SSSR. 65.) Moskva (Izdatel'stvo

        Akademii Nauk SSSR), 1959. 362, (2)pp. Prof. illus. Lrg. 4to.

        Novgorod 1958 Volume II Iron and Steel by B.A. Kolchin,

        Weapons A. F. Medvedev, Leatherwork and Shoemaking by S.A.

        Izyumova, Metal articles of dress and adornment by M.V.

        Sedova, Seals, Agriculture.

xxxxxxxxxxxx

Books by Jim Hrisoulas

This guy has written several books on forging blades and doing

damascus forging. I don't have the last one. He has a Phd in

metallurgy and is a professional bladesmith.

I have The Master Bladesmith and The Complete Bladesmith.

Dr JP Hrisoulas    jhrisoulas at aol.com (Dr JP Hrisoulas)

Metallographer, Lecturer

Author:  The Complete Bladesmith, The Master Bladesmith,

& The Pattern Welded Blade

LtC NVDoM, http://www.Atar.com

This guy is an OLD SCAdian and is known as Master Atar in the SCA.

xxxxxxxxxxxxx

7 Jun 01 From: rmhowe <mmagnusm at bellsouth.net> Authenticity List

Real Wootz / Damascene / Damascus Steel

 

A few days ago I got a bit diverse in one of my discussions on

the Medieval-leatherworking list and mentioned that it was only

in the last twenty years that the Medieval Wootz of the type

that once travelled the India to Damascus route had been

rediscovered after about 150 years of European attempts at

imitations.

 

Someone requested that I ramble on a bit. As I generally have

documentation for my opinions (but not time to find it usually)

I shall give you lucky other people some sources to research it

yourself. Assuming this means anything at all to you. If it

doesn't then I apologize for wasting your time.

 

I have about fifty large folders on diverse subjects besides

the library. Fortunately I had the time at one time to put a

number of articles into a couple of fat ones on knives and

swords. These are taken from various magazines and sources.

The ones from the last few years are not separated out and

filed so I shall not be messing with them. They're in stacks

of magazines mostly. I suppose it could give you an insight

into how well I follow my interests...

 

Easiest found will probably be:

 

"Damascus Steels" by Oleg D. Sherby and Jeffrey Wadsworth

in: _Scientific American Volume 252: pp.112-115, February 1983_.

This is a general history with illustrations of enlarged steel

microsection, a Persian Scymitar, and an illustrated method of

the production of wootz steel.

        In their citations they give:

        _A History of Metallography_ by Cyril S. Smith.

                U of Chicago Press, 1965

        "On the Bulat - Damascus Steels Revisited

                by Jeffery Wadsworth and Oleg. D. Sherby

                in: _Progress in Material Science, Vol. 25, pp.35-68.

                1980. A Bulat is the cake of wootz steel.

        "Damascus Steelmaking" by Jeffery Wadsworth and Oleg D.

            Sherby in: _Science, Vol. 218, No. 4570, pages 328-9,

                October 22, 1983.

 

Jeffrey Wadsworth (at least at that time) was professor of Materials

Science at Stanford, and Wadsworth later went to work at Lockheed

Aircraft's Research Laboratory. What started them on their quest in

1975 at Stanford was a search for superplastic steels, ones with

grain 200 times finer than commonly machined steel for use in

forming steel and then cooling it - thus making it stronger in use,

quicker to make, and cheaper to produce - gears and engine mountings

for example. They didn't realize what they had reproduced was

Damascus until a listener at one of their lectures informed them

and they subsequently researched it. They obtained a patent in

1976 for the material.

 

This is again written up in:

"Rediscovered - Supersteel of the Ancients" by James Trefil in:

Science Digest - February 1983, pp. 38-40 and p. 108. This discusses

their earlier findings of rolling out the steel at 2050 degrees

F, and working it at 1200 degrees F. There is also a bit of folklore

in this article, quenching in a live Nubian or urine are mentioned.

 

This later also showed up in an Associated Press Article by

Michelle Locke "Damascus Steel may have resurfaced" that I didn't

record the date of. This one mentions the above two researchers,

but adds another pair of similar questors - Florida knifesmith

Al Pendray and Iowa State University metallurgist John Verhoeven,

who used more traditional methods. This mentions a mixture or

Iron and possibly milkweed as ingredients in the crucible.

 

A somewhat better article that mentions the later pair appeared in

_Blade_ Magazine in August 1992, pp.52-5 & pp.96-7 & 100 entitled:

"Breakthrough - How the Ancients Made _Real_ Damascus" and

which _I_ take to be more authentic than laboratory conditions

and modern rolling mills. The article was by Al Pendray, a

famous master bladesmith, and W.E. Dauksch, and J.D. Verhoeven.

(It also mentions the publication of a book called _On Damascus

Steel_ by Dr. Leo Figiel, which was then available for $37.50

from Blade, POBox 22007, Chattanooga, TN 37422, USA.) This contrasts

the two techniques, the industrial one, and the small scale one,

involving crucibled steel, which has also been patented. It's

fairly well illustrated and includes further citations in

journals by Wadsworth and Sherby.

 

I know that I have seen further articles on Pendray and Verhoeven

since then refining their technique yet further. Pendray was

mentioned earlier in an article in Blade Magazine July-August

1987 called the Wizard of Wootz by Daryl Meir, and earlier yet

in Blade Magazine September/Oct '82 by Meir again in an article

Entitled Damascus Steel - Wootz Revisited. In this article

Robert C. Job of Hawthorne, NJ, USA is working with Al Pendray

and Stephen Swertzer of Williston, Florida. Mr. Job is the

principle subject of this article though and he has a further

method for producing crucibled wootz steel, also patented.

 

Pendray and Verhoeven are the people I associate with true

modern Damascus, but that is a personal opinion.

 

Meir also wrote an article on entitled "Damascus Steel - A

Definition" in Blade Magazine, July-August 1982, in which

he tries to set forth an accurate description of what should

be considered true damascus steel, contrasting it's historical

methods of manufacture with the modern imitations. I don't

know how many readers of this actually read Knives Illustrated

or Blade Magazine but there are a couple of dozen ways to

make modern damascus involving state-of-the-art modern,  

very high technology methods. Most modern jewelers have very

little at all on some of the modern blade artisans, there

probably isn't a technique or material in jewellery or machining

they aren't exploring or haven't explored. I get Lapidary

Journal and some other gem and metalsmithing magazines and

I can tell you there is one hell of a high state of art done.

 

Smiths can literally spell their names or logos or other artworks

clear through the steel - multiple times using various methods.

Mixing nickel and steel, or using steel cable, or using steels of

mixed carbon content is not the same thing as using wootz steel,

nor is wootz made the same way, or forged the same way as it's

more modern imitations that use the name Damascus.

 

An earlier article on "The Manufacture of Mediaeval Damascened

Knives" by J. Piaskowski appeared in the Journal of the Iron

and Steel Institute, Vol. 202, July 1964, pp. 561-8. This

investigates the manufacture and pattern in medieval European

imitations of Damascus steel in Poland. An interesting thing

in this article is the cross sections, and a newly ground,

polished and etched side of one knife showing that the Polish

knives had damascene patterns on the upper fatter portion of

the knives (which in at least one instance was very pretty),

and a higher carbon edge of uniform steel welded on below it.

 

In _Science_, Volume 216, No.4543, 16 April 1982, pp 242-3

Cyril Smith of M.I.T. discusses the historical methods and literary

history of imported Damascus in the west - citing Giambattista

della Porta, in _Magiae Naturalis XX_, 1589, London english

translation, 1568, and Joseph Moxon's references to it in

Mechanick Excercises, London 1677, describing it's working

properties at a blood red heat, its highly prized properties

as punches, and how it would crumble at higher heats. He also

references his own work - History of Metallography- and others

specifically Breant (1820's)and Faraday.

 

In _Science_, Vol. 218, no. 4570, 22 Oct. 1982 Sherby and

Wadsworth dispute Smith's claim that properties of damascus

steel were well known in the 19th century.

Apparently the 1980's were a hot time in the steel re-discovery

field. Three patents at least.

 

An interesting history of Damascene steel may be had in an

earlier work "Damascene Steel" in _Journal of the Iron and

Steel Institute, Vol. 97 pp.417-37, 1918. The author traces

numerous oriental techniques and says the process extends

centuries back before Christ. Gives a nice long historical

discussion.

 

I've entirely left out the imitation damascus steels and

their widely varied methods. They are indeed awesome, but

they are not wootz. (This in no way means any disrespect to

Dr. Hrisoulas, metallurgist PhD, master bladesmith. I own

two of his books, but not the one on Patternwelded Blades.

Jim Hrisoulas is known as Master Atar in the SCA and well

respected for his knowledge.) It is only considering the

rediscovery of wootz by various modern others.

 

[Regia-NA] Replication of Sutton Hoo Sword book 12 Jun 01

      rmhowe <MMagnusM at bellsouth.net> list-regia-us at netword.com

       One of the recent aquisitions to my library was:

"Modern Replication Based on the Pattern-Welded Sword of Sutton Hoo"

        Engstrom, Robert; $8.00 plus shipping. Paperback.

       from: http://www.borders.com/ Borders.com customerservice at borders.com

        customerservice at borders.com or call us at 1-800-770-7811.

       This concerns replicating the Sutton Hoo Sword blade only which

        was a complicated piece of work. It ended up displayed in tandem

        with the original in the British Museum.

  

The other article I have on this is in the Knives '90 annual.

        It makes very interesting reading. The sword is pattern-welded

        with differing patterns on either side of the blade.

  

Master Magnus Malleus, OL, GDH, Atlantia

© R.M. Howe 2001.

 

***May be reposted to closed email discussion groups within

the re-enactor circle, but not to open newsgroups, such as

the Rialto - rec.org.sca, or to the SCA-Universitas list.

Those desirous of republication in a newsletter should contact

me.  Inclusion in the http://www.Florilegium.org/ is permitted.***

 

 

From: atlantia-admin at atlantia.sca.org

Sent: Friday, December 14, 2001 2:33 PM

To: - Atlantia; - Stephan's Florilegium; - Regia Anglorum - North

America

Subject: [MR] Making a sword

 

Melanie Wilson wrote:

> As the greatest keeper of booklists I know ;) have you a list of

> how to books etc on Dark Age swords at all ? - Mel

 

I bow to the great Master Magnus, Bibliophile, whose shadow I most

humbly and respectfully stand in...  If I may be so bold as to add one

other book to this incredible list:

 

        _The Celtic Sword_, Radomir Pleiner with contributions by B. G.

Scott.  Clarendon Press, Oxford. 1993.  ISBN 0-19-813411-8

 

Contents: 1) The Origin of the Celtic Long Sword in Early Europe, 2)

Styles of Combat Among the Celts, 3) Notes on the Archaeology of the

Celtic Sword, 4) The Characteristics of the Celtic Sword, 5) How the

Long Sword was Made, 6) Metallographic Examinations of Swords From

Czechoslovakia, 7) Metallographic Examinations of Other La Tene Period

Swords From Europe and the British Isles 8) Techniques of Sword

Manufacture, 9) Battleworthiness

 

I hope this information isn't too early period for you. It's a great

book.

 

Your Humble Servant and Magnus-Wannabe, :)

 

Gawain Kilgore / Gregory Stapleton

 

<the end>



Formatting copyright © Mark S. Harris (THLord Stefan li Rous).
All other copyrights are property of the original article and message authors.

Comments to the Editor: stefan at florilegium.org