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Northern Sword Types of the
First Millennium
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What I give you here is an extremely
abbreviated account of the "science" of classifying swords found
(more or less) in the "North" in the (more or less) first half of the
first millennium. Typically, each class has several subclasses, and even the
swords in one subclass can look quite different.
The classification is based on a lot of features that are not always
immediately apparent. They are also not always clear since "the
book" on occasion states plain nonsense 1).
Unfortunately the book also refers a lot to (non-existent)
"carburization" and makes many unsubstantiated claims with regard to
the positive influence of pattern welding on mechanical properties like better
"elasticity" or "vibrations damping". |
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The swords get younger in time
as you go down the lists. More precise data to the dating of the swords are
given farther down. The general system always used for giving periods from
about 0 AD to 500 AD is shown below. It will be used throughout. |
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The time periods in the 1st half of the 1st
millennium |
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12 groups with altogether 60
subgroups and variants to subgroups are needed to classify a grand total of
418 swords! In other words: While there some are common denominators for
groups of swords, any given sword is rather unique. More! Two swords that look
alike enough to put them in the same group / subgroup may be totally different
with respect to their compositions. One might be a randomly piled together
piece of inhomogeneous iron / steel, while the other one is a master piece of
highly complex pattern welding. |
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Anyway, here are the 12 major groups. For each
type there is a map showing where the swords were found.
I have distilled the comments from long texts and edited the maps to some
extent. I might be a bit off on occasion. One reason for this is that the data
given in the maps do not always match those in the text.
Whenever I refer to "piling" etc., I interpreted what I read (and I
might be wrong).
Most of these swords were definitely or quite likely made in the Roman empire
and "exported" to the Barbaricum.
It appears that the metallographic examinations were mostly made in the
"East", e.g. in Poland, using the swords found there. It is thus
possible that the simple make and bad quality often found just testifies that
the guys there made "cheap" copies of the more complex Roman swords.
They look like the original (and it is the look that defines the groups here)
but have not much in common with the structure of the original. That is just my
feeling, however, and I might be completely wrong.
The number in the right-hand corner of the following tables gives the number of
known swords of the respective type. |
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Canterbury-Kopki |
1st - 2nd century;
B2 - C1a |
25 |
- Light to medium light Roman "export" spatha for the
"Barbaricum". For horseback use; 72 cm - 88 cm.
- 2 subtypes; 2 variants
- Mostly found: 15 in the Przeworsk
culture 2) (Poland) area;
10 around the border area of Empire.
- 14 swords analyzed. 8 pattern welded, 2 "primitive", probably
random piling.
- About 2/3 of these swords were made with a complex pattern welding,
including chevron patterns. A few have incrustations and stamps.
- Roman origin is likely for most but not all.
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Canterbury-Kopki swords; map of
finds |
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Buch-Podlodóv |
C1a; some C1b; B2 |
18 |
- Roman spatha variant; long with broad blades. Very light - medium light.
- 3 subtypes; 3 variants.
- 12 from Przeworsk culture (Poland) 6 elsewhere, around Empire border.
- 8 swords analyzed. 7 with pattern welding, 1 "primitive".
- Complex pattern welding, including chevron patterns. Mostly from Roman
smithies. Incrustations; typically 2 - 4 fullers
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Buch-Podlodow swords; map of finds |
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Lachmirowice-Apa |
Mostly C1a, B2, a few C1b |
47 |
- Medium weight late Roman spatha type.
- 3 subtypes; 3 variants.
- 39 Przeworsk culture (Poland), 3 in Danish bogs, 5 elsewhere.
- 21 swords analyzed; all from the East. 10 primitive (including two with
incrustations and thus most likely Roman), 5 pattern welded, rest piling by
face-welding.
- All kinds of cross-sections; with and without fullers.
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Lachmirowice-Apa swords; map of
finds |
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Folkeslunda-Zaspy |
Mostly C1b |
23 |
- Medium weight spatha.
- 2 subtypes; 1 variant
- 2 in Danish bogs; rest in the "East".
- 21 swords analyzed; all "primitive" except the 2 pattern-welded
ones from Danish bogs.
- Simple cross-sections; typically no fullers.
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Folkeslunda-Zaspy swords; map of
finds |
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Lauriacum-Hromówka |
Mostly C1b or a bit later |
11 (?) |
- Medium length, quite broad. Medium weight
- 2 subtypes; 1 variant
- All over; 1 in Danish bogs.
- Some metallurgical analysis, pretty much all swords are pattern welded.
- Typically many fullers; some with asymmetric cross-section. Many with
incrustations or other adornments
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Lauriacum-Hromówka swords; map of
finds |
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Woerden-Bjaers |
All C1b |
36 |
- Late Roman medium (to heavy) weight spatha. Slashing type
- 2 subtypes; 2 variants
- 25 from Danish bogs,
rest all over (the East)
- 2 (eastern ones) analyzed. 1 primitive, 1 pattern welded. Most of the rest
obviously pattern welded including very complex patterns
- All kinds of cross-sections, typically with fullers, some asymmetric. Often
stamps and incrustations.
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Woerden-Bjaers swords; map of finds |
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Vimose-Illerup. Long, pointed.
Mostly on the light side. |
Almost all C1b |
102 |
- Longish narrow blades ("rapier like"), middle weight.
- 6 subtypes; 4 variants.
- Mostly Danish bogs,
otherwise Scandinavia and Barbaricum.
- 8 analyzed. Primitive piling, good piling and pattern welding occur. More
than 50 % with recognizable compelx pattern welding. Quench hardening in some
cases.
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Vimose-Illerup swords; map of finds |
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Nydam
Kragehul |
Mostly C2 |
58 |
- Similar to Woerden-Bjaers; lighter.
- 3 subtypes; 2 variants
- Mostly Nydam.
Otherwise Sveden and the East.
- 8 analyzed (mostly form the East). 2 with primitive piling, rest complex
pattern welding.
- Cross-section mostly symmetric; with and without (at most 2) fullers. Some
with incrustations and / or stamps.
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Nydam-Kragehul swords; map of finds |
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Snipstad |
C2 (6) - D (3) |
8 |
- Similar to Lauriacum-Hromówka. Medium weight; long.
- 1 subtype; 1 variant.
- No metallurgical analysis yet (2006).
- Mostly from Esbjol;l.
- Asymmetric blades; 2 - 6 fullers per side. Often complex pattern welding
visible.
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Snipstad swords; map of finds |
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Voien-Hedelisker |
C2 - D1; even D2 |
13 |
- Akin to Vimose-Illerup. Long, pointed.
Mostly on the light side.
- 2 subtypes; 1 variants.
- 1 (Eastern) sword analyzed: uniform homogeneous steel (!)
- Mostly from Danish
bogs (Nydam, Esbjoel, Illerup); a few from Norway; the East.
- No fullers. Most swords made by more complex piling or (simple (?)) pattern
welding.
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Voien-Hedelisker; map of finds |
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Esbjol;l-Sarry |
Mostly D |
106 |
- Late Roman, Migration spatha; pointed, rather heavy. Forerunner of heavy
Merovingian swords.
- 4 subtypes; 6 variants.
- 11 swords analyzed: Simple and complex piling; some (simple) pattern
welding. Some swords are made form rather uniform steel (!)
- Mostly Danish bogs (70%); Rest from Norway; Przeworsk culture, Empire
border
- Symmetric (six faces) no fullers. No stamps or incrustations
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Esbøl-Sarry; map of finds |
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Osterburken-Vrasselt |
C3 - D1 |
16 |
- Long, broad, unadorned and heavy - the sword for the non-nonsense guy?
- 2 subtypes; 2 variants.
- No metallurgical analysis yet (2006)
- Towards the South: all over in bog.
- Symmetric; often simple (lentil) + shallow broad fuller. No stamps or
incrustations. At least 2 swords have patterns ; most are heavily corroded
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Osterburken-Vrasselt; map of finds |
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Here is a direct
comparison of these sword types. I picked one sword of each group, more or less
at random, from the selections given in the book. Note that there is a lot of
variance within just one group. Pick other examples and the picture would look
quite different |
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Here is a full map
for Canterbury-Kopki swords with some areas / cultures higlighted ( by
me). |
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The
dating of the swords relies mostly on
contextual evidence, e.g. what kind of hilt was found with a sword. The
fashion in hilt shapes and material changed; here is a kind of temporal
map: |
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This link shows how the fashion in hilts developed
after about 400 AD. |
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Most of the 418
swords discussed here have been dated to one of the periods
given above or to, for example "B2 or
C1a", with precise percentages given. Below is my attempt to turn many
pages of prose into a graph. The color gives the type, the length of the lines
the percentage assigned to a certain time slot. The position of the lines on
the time scale is more or less arbitrary within the proper time slot(s). |
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© H. Föll (Iron, Steel and Swords script)