Swords of myth and legend
Attila the Hun's sword, which was claimed to be the sword of Mars, the Roman god of war.
Bhawani (Sword) - The Sword given to Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj by Goddess Tuljabhavani.
Caladbolg - Sword of Fergus mac Róich
Chandrahas - The Sword given to Ravana by Lord Shiva.
Claíomh Solais - Sword of Nuada Airgeadlámh, legendary king of Ireland
Crocea Mors - Sword of Julius Caesar
Curtana - Sword of Ogier the Dane, a legendary Danish hero, and a paladin of Charlemagne
Durendal - Sword of Roland, one of Charlemagne's paladins—alleged to be the same sword as the one wielded by Hector of Ilium
Durendal - A sword that belonged to Hector of Ilium
Excalibur/Caliburn/Caledflwch - Sword of King Arthur
Fragarach - Sword of Manannan mac Lir and Lugh Lamfada
Gram (Balmung) (Nothung) - Sword of Siegfried, hero of the Nibelungenlied
Green Dragon Crescent Blade (青龍偃月刀, Mandarin: qīng lóng yǎn yuè dāo，Cantonese: ching¹ lung⁴ yim² yuet⁶ do¹) was a legendary weapon wielded by Guan Yu in the historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms. It is a guandao, a type of traditional Chinese weapon.
Hauteclere - Sword of Olivier, a French hero depicted in the Song of Roland
Heaven's Will/The Will of Heaven/Thuan Thien/Thuận Thiên. Sword of Vietnamese King Le Loi
Hrunting - Sword lent to Beowulf by Unferth, ineffective against Grendel's mother
Joyeuse - Sword of Charlemagne
Totsuka no Tsurugi - The sword Susanoo used to slay the Yamata no Orochi.
Kusanagi - Sword that Susanoo found in the dead body of the Yamata no Orochi. It is one of three Imperial Regalia of Japan, and also known as Ama-no-Murakumo-no-Tsurugi (天叢雲剣).
Laevateinn - Sword that Surtr will use to bring down the dome of heaven at Ragnarök.
Lobera, the sword of the king Saint Ferdinand III of Castile
Melethling - Said to be the magical embodiment of love and courageousness.
Mimung - Sword that Wudga inherits from his father Wayland the Smith
Móralltach, the mythical greatsword of the Celtic god Aéngus
Naegling - Sword of Beowulf in his old age, used to fight the dragon
Philippan - Sword given to Marc Antony by Cleopatra. Antony lost the sword when he was defeated by Octavian at the Battle of Actium.
Shamshir-e Zomorrodnegar - Sword of King Solomon(in Persian folklore)
Taming Sari - The Kris belonging to the Malay warrior Hang Tuah of the Malacca Sultanate.
Tyrfing - Cursed sword that causes eventual death to its wielder and their kin, it is said to bring about three great evils.
Wikipedia: Swords of myth and legend
Wikipedia: Types of swords#History and mythology
Wikipedia: Green_Dragon_Crescent_Blade
Blade weapons | Ancient weapons | Swords
Sword
 |
| Swiss longsword, 15th- or 16th-century |
Sword
A sword is a bladed weapon (edged weapon) used primarily for cutting or thrusting. The precise definition of the term varies with the historical epoch or the geographical region under consideration.
In the most narrow sense, a sword consists of a straight blade with two edges and a hilt. However, in some cases the term may also refer to weapons with a single edge (backsword).
The word sword comes from the Old English sweord, cognate to Old High German swert, Old Norse sverð, from a Proto-Indo-European root *swer- "to wound, to cut". Non-European weapons called "sword" include single-edged weapons such as the Middle Eastern saif, the Chinese dao and the related Japanese katana. The Chinese jian is an example of a non-European double-edged sword, like the European models derived from the double-edged Iron Age sword.
Historically, the sword developed in the Bronze Age, evolving from the dagger; the earliest specimens date to ca. 1600 BC. The Iron Age sword remained fairly short and without a crossguard. The spatha as it developed in the Late Roman army became the predecessor of the European sword of the Middle Ages, at first adopted as the Migration period sword, and only in the High Middle Ages developed into the classical arming sword with crossguard.
The use of a sword is known as swordsmanship or (in an early modern or modern context) as fencing. In the Early Modern period, the sword developed into the rapier and eventually the smallsword, surviving into the 18th century only in the role of dueling weapon. By the 19th century, swords were reduced to the status of either ceremonial weapon or sport equipment in modern fencing.
The sword is said to be the emblem of military honor and should incite the bearer to a just and generous pursuit of honor and virtue. It is symbolic of liberty and strength. In the Middle Ages, the sword was often used as a symbol of the word of God. The names given to many swords in mythology, literature, and history reflect the high prestige of the weapon and the wealth of the owner.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sword
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)