12/08/2017
Reconstrucción de un escudo redondo
Mikkel Mønsted asked for the dimensions of the handle on my Viking shield replica, so here they are: Thickness is 22.5 mm, Width is 29.2 mm. The cross section is D-shaped with the flat side facing towards the boss. This shape is based on the handle of the Danish shield from Trelleborg that was excavated in 2010. See some images here: https://www.facebook.com/pg/Dimicator-266934476773420/photos/?tab=album&album_id=288862977913903 . The terminals of the original handle bar are missing today, but in all likelihood, the bar originally covered the shield's complete diameter of 84 cm. My shield is 90cm in diameter. Handle length equates the opening for the shield boss, which on my shield is 11.2 cm. The decoration on my handle is based on the Trelleborg example, too, however, I doubled it so that it covers the full handle length on the its top side (11.6 cm). See a video presentation of the completed shield here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/11753140
09/11/2016
The instructional video on sword & buckler basics is now available via internet for stream & download: https://vimeo.com/ondemand/swordandshield/157278375
(Find the original German version here: https://vimeo.com/ondemand/schwertundschild/141788157 ) It is a few years old and I have reassessed, altered and refined many things. But it might be interesting to compare with more recent ideas presented via my YT channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/warzechas
07/11/2016
The Langeid Viking Battle Axe
The Langeid Viking Battle Axe: The original and the copy. (Photo: Vegard Vike, Museum of Cultural History, University of Oslo) Contrary to what many believe, battle axes from the last part of the V…
23/09/2016
A video about shields, with damage tests for different materials.
Un video sobre escudos, con pruebas de resistencia.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VsZnTCQptWc&ab_channel=tsafa
Weapons that Made Britain - Shield Tests
Weapons that Made Britain - Shield Tests The key points are: 0:53 Thick cow skin used to cover both sides. That skin looks like 10oz. Thick leather adds a lo...
20/09/2016
An interview with Rolf Warming about Viking Age round shields.
Interview with Rolf F. Warming
Interview with Rolf F. Warming A few notes on Viking Age Shields Rolf Fabricius Warming is Danish archaeologist, whose studies have preeminently been on the subject of combat and conflict in the past, ranging from Mesolithic violence to organized state formation in the early modern period. He holds…
30/08/2016
A video of Peter Johnsson explaining sword design and blade dynamics.
It is of paramount importance to understand these concepts when choosing a sword or judging its quality.
Un video de Peter Johnsson explicando la relación entre el diseño de una espada y su comportamiento.
Es importante entender estos detalles para poder diferenciar una buena espada de una mediocre; o para elegir, entre varias buenas espadas, la más adecuada al uso que se le quiera dar.
Peter Johnsson: Paradoxes of Sword Design
Arctic Fire 2012
26/08/2016
An article by Frank Lurz about sword wounds, and their effects on the human body.
http://www.classicalfencing.com/articles/bloody.php
The Dubious Quick Kill, part 1
Fencing and rapier instruction, practice, and display, also smallsword and western swordsmanship
26/08/2016
A post by Dimicator about germanic shield reconstruction.
Authentically dimensioned shields should have a minimum diameter of 80 cm, ideally with a handle of D-shaped cross section like the Trelleborg original (flat side facing inwards, as seen here: ). Even more important is to grind down – or rather carve down – shield boards so that they become thinner towards the edges. Not only would you save a lot of weight this way, you also get much better handling characteristics because mass distribution improves tremendously, making the shield a lot more agile. It makes a huge difference.
The challenge would be to make shields that hardly exceed 3 kg or are even lighter than that. My current lightest shield has a diameter of 85 cm, covered with linen on either side. It is 3.8 kg – but I will soon make new authentic ones that will be lighter.
Weight is also effected by the amount of glue you use and the materials you put onto the board (linen, parchment). Naturally, a thick hide is heavier than ground down parchment.
Original woods for Germanic or Viking shields were basically relatively light wood that was easily available in a particular region, such as poplar, linden, alder, spruce or pine.
It is fair to assume that shields of differing robustness and weight existed for special purposes. So if you have to fight a duel, a lighter shield that does not have to cope with a rain of missiles would be a reasonable choice. Keep in mind that some Icelandic rule set allowed up to three shields per combatant in a duel.
Most modern shields are way too heavy. Often this is due to the kind of context they are being used in, e.g. in blunt weapon combat sports and battles with a lot of forceful flailing. But such shields are little use if you want to move them like an actual weapon with proficiency.
Like learning archery with too strong a bow is pointless, so is learning combat with too heavy a shield.
Modern practitioners wanted training swords they could master a long time ago. Now we need shields we can train martial arts with.
Find more information on original shields here: http://members.ozemail.com.au/~chrisandpeter/shield/shield.html
and a PDF of mine here:
http://www.sendspace.com/pro/dl/ekvgfy
16/08/2016
An article by Tom Leoni about the meaning of Martial Arts.
"Understanding why swordsmanship was called an art is indispensable towards understanding its essence and structure."
http://www.salvatorfabris.org/WhatIsArt.shtml
Understanding the "A" in WMA
Learn why rapier fencing is an art, as defined by Renaissance dictionaries. Discover why an art is a collection of rules aimed at producing a repeatable end--in the case of the rapier, that of hitting without being hit.
15/08/2016
A post by Ilkka Hartikainen about the sword hand and arm as a target.
"Every mistake the opponent makes can and should be taken advantage of [...] Not doing so in training is making a disservice to the training partner"
The simplest target is the advanced one
The sword hand is the protector of the body, to which it connects through the arm it is attached to. This body, however, is not the protector of the arm. The above is a paraphrased quote from the Anonimo Bolognese. It means that the hand, if wounded, can no longer
20/09/2016
30/08/2016
26/08/2016
16/08/2016
15/08/2016