Drinking Horns – A Viking Invention? Not Quite…
Posted by MRL on Feb 21st 2018
When did drinking horns originate? While there is no definite answer to this question the best guess is that, as man evolved, we needed something to hold our water and so we turned the horns of animals we hunted to drinking vessels. Horn was a versatile raw material and also used to make other products, such as combs, spoons, tool handles, and cups, apart from having symbolic significance. Though drinking horns are typically associated with the V...
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The Differences between the Maintz and Pompeii styles of Gladius
Posted by MRL on Jan 10th 2018
The Roman Gladius was effectively used for centuries and during that time saw few changes in design, but the ones it did see were significant. The Maintz pattern being an evolution of the spatha and the Pompeii evolving further from the Maintz pattern. The most easily identified differences are the body style of the blade and the point of the sword.Right from the beginning a person can see that the body of these two styles vary from each other. T...
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Rapiers vs. Sabers
Posted by MRL on Jan 10th 2018
At first glance, the differences between sabers and rapiers appear obvious. Although both are one-handed swords, the shape of the blade and how it is used are vastly different. Let's take a closer look at these fascinating blades.Rapiers are straight, thrust-oriented swords. Although it is not common, there are historical examples of the top third of the blade being sharpened and honed to a fine edge so that the blade can double as a draw cut spe...
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