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Weapons Dictionary Search |
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Name |
Origin |
Description |
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Abbasi |
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Straight-bladed steel sword with a padded hilt; back of the blade was strengthened by supports; often highly decorated with gold inlay and gilt |
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Roman |
Wooden Roman throwing stick with a spiked head; attached to user's arm with a strap which enabled it to be retrieved after it had been thrown |
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Adarga |
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Parrying weapon consisting of a small bladed shield attached to a short spear |
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General |
The adze was a traditional carpenter’s tool with a long thin axe-like blade attached at a right angle to the handle; they were used for cutting grooves. The Maori of New Zealand used adzes (called a toki) as war weapons. Theirs were carved of bone or jade, usually very elaborately, and lashed to a wooden handle. |
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Ahlespiess |
German |
A polearm common to German-speaking areas, particularly used by the Swiss and Habsburgs: the wooden shaft is relatively short, and the weapon is equipped with a long square rod that is sharpened at the end for thrusting. It could be used either to stab, or, if caught out of a close formation, as an effective anti-armor club |
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Ailette |
European |
Flat plate of leather or parchment which tied to the point of the shoulder; worn between 1250-1350 to display the owner's coat of arms |
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AK-47 |
U.S.S.R |
The most famous automatic weapon in the world today is the AK-47 Light machine gun. It is a 7.62mm that can punch holes in an blackhawk chopper, yet it is one of the most accurate and durable weapons in the world. |
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Aketon |
European |
Quilted garment worn under armour (see also "gambeson") to absorb shock and impact. The term originated with Crusaders and is said to derive from the word "cotton." |
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Persian |
The Akinakes was a characteristic Persian sidearm. It was short in length but could be used for both cut and thrust. It is of Scythian origin, adopted by both the Medes and Persians from at least the seventh century until the second century B.C. |
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Alamani |
Indian |
Curved steel Indian sword with a gilt handle |
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Ama-goi-ken |
Japanese |
A Japanese temple sword which represents Amakurikara, or rain dragon; a straight-bladed, double-edged sword |
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Indian |
Indian elephant goad; vary greatly in size from about 40 to 120 centimeters in length; shorter ones were used by riders, while the longer versions were used by the trainers who were on foot |
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Anelace |
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A heavy, broad-bladed, sharp-pointed, double-edged knife |
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Angolan battle-axe |
African |
Weapon with blade attached to a wooden handle |
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Arbalest |
General |
An extremely heavy crossbow, usually with a metal bow. Arbalests were too heavy to draw by hand, and required a windlass or cranequin. |
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Arbir |
Indonesia |
Halberd weapon of pentjak-silat approximately five feet in length that features a shallow groove in the plane of the blade running the length of the shaft |
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Arit |
Indonesian |
Sickle with pronounced crescent-blade patterns and a short handle, used in pentjak-silat. |
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Armet |
European |
Close-fitted, visored helmet that appears to have originated in Italy sometime before 1450 and remained in use through 15th and 16th centuries. The armet was lighter and more protective than the bascinet it surplanted and made use of a new innovation of hinged cheek pieces. This way, the helmet could be closed around the head, and the weight taken up by the gorget and the shoulders. The armet was supplanted by the close-helmet, in turn. |
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Arming Cap |
European |
Quilted cap worn beneath the helmet. |
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Arming doublet |
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Quilted garment worn under armour from the early fifteenth century, equipped with points to attach mail gussets and pieces of armour |
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Arming Sword |
European |
After the 14th century, with the appearance of the longsword the simple, single-handed weapon became known as a short sword or arming sword, since it hung from the belt of the knight, while his longsword hung from the saddle. |
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Arnis |
European |
Italian for "harness", the historical term for being "in armour". |
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Arquebus |
General |
A short musket like early firearm usually used in conjunction with pikes. The weapons were loaded at the muzzle, with smoothbore barrels. |
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Aventail |
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1. a mail garment protecting the neck 2. a "curtain"of mail to protect the neck, suspended from the helmet and reaching to the shoulders |
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Axe |
General |
It is nearly impossible to define the axe as a weapon with a single description or picture. Axes are a category of weapons all by themselves, much as swords, clubs, and polearms are. |
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Ay-baita axe |
Turkish |
Turkish battle-axe; head is mounted with a pick opposite the blade and broad metal bands extend down from the head along the wooden shaft for reinforcement |
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Ba |
Chinese |
Knife handle; Sword hilt |
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Babanga |
African |
Sword consisting of a metal leaf-shaped blade fitted onto a wooden hilt |
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Backsword |
European |
The backsword was so named because it only had one cutting edge. The non-cutting edge (the back of the blade) was much thicker than the cutting edge thus creating a wedge type shape which was said to increase the weapons cutting capacity. The weapon is extremely similar to the messer, with the exception that the messer is usually made with a slight curve, whereas the backsword is almost always straight. Also known as a "Mortuary Sword", or the German "Reitschwert." |
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Baculus |
General |
In terms of semantics, a baculus is defined as a staff, especially one that symbolizes authority. The term baculus, or baculum, is Latin for staff. Used in combat throughout Europe until well after the middle ages, the baculus was a heavy, hardwood club with a knotty head used for striking. While not as durable as a metal headed mace, the baculus could still inflict significant concussion damage to an armored or un-armored opponent. It was a popular weapon among conscripted soldiers because it was a relatively inexpensive weapon and easily obtained. It was common practice for soldiers using a baculus to carve and engrave the wood with pictures and marks recounting battles in which they had fought. |
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Badelaire |
European |
Sword with a heavy, curved blade and S-shaped quillions; used during the 16th century |
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Badge |
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An emblematic figure, placed on some prominent part of the clothing of servants and retainers, such as the breast, back, sleeve, etc., to show to what household they belonged; found also on flags, and buildings |
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Malay |
Dagger shaped like a butterfly whose straight blade bears one sharp edge |
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Baggoro club |
Australian |
Flat club made of hardwood with a sharpened edge |
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Bagh nakh |
Indian |
(tiger claw, bich'hwa bagh nakh) bar with four or five curved blades attached; on each end of the bar a ring is attached so forefinger and pinky can be slipped through the rings with the bar in the palm; sometimes fitted with dagger blades |
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Balestarius axe |
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Large Battak axe/adze; head is fitted into the wooden handle and then lashed with reed |
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Baleyn |
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Medieval word for whalebone which was used for weapons and armour during the 14th century |
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Balisong |
Phillipines |
Knife, also known as a "butterfly knife." |
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Ball & chain |
European |
Type of flail; consists of a metal ball attached to a short wooden handle by a chain |
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Ballinger / balinger |
European |
1. English sailing barge usually with from forty to fifty oars 2. small oared vessel with single mast and sail. |
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Balta axe |
Turkish |
Turkish battle-axe; the axe head was normally engraved and often inlaid with silver or gold |
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Bang |
Chinese |
Club |
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Barbut |
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(also called barbute and barbuta) an open-faced shoulder-length helmet, made in one piece, with a T-shaped face opening |
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Barbute |
Italian |
Another Italian helmet design of the mid-15th century, the barbute or barbuta was a close-fitting helmet that came in a variety of open, and close-faced forms. It’s most famous design, had a “Y” or “T” shaped slot in the face to provide vision and ventilation, and was clearly modeled on ancient Classical Greek helmets. |
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Bard, or Barding |
General |
A term for horse armor, which could be made from a variety of materials, including mail and plate. |
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Bardiche, or Berdiche |
General |
A polearm with a long chopping blade, often with a slight curve. Numerous varieties of this basic weapon existed under a score of different names. |
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Bascinet |
European |
Basin-shaped helmet, that evolved out of the small steel skull-cap worn beneath the great helm. The bascinet was initially open-faced, but as it supplanted the helm as the primary defense, a variety of hinged visors were developed. Bascinets were in use from the mid-14th through the mid-15th centuries, and were still occasionally used by foot soldiers into the early 16th century. |
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Baselard |
General |
A dagger/short sword with an H-shaped hilt. |
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Basilard |
European |
A two-edged, long bladed dagger of the late Middle Ages, often worn with both civilian dress and armour. |
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Bastard Swords |
European |
Developed in the mid 1400's as a form of long-sword with specially shaped grips for one or two hands. These swords typically had longer handles which allowed use by one or both hands. The sword's hilt often had side-rings and finger rings to defend the hand, and a more slender, or tapered, narrowly pointed blade. Bastard swords continued to be used by knights and men-at-arms into the 1500's, and for a time, enjoyed the civilian side-arm role that would later be superceded by the sidesword and rapier. |
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Battering Ram |
Unknown |
A Battering Ram is a large chunk of wood used to knock down castle walls in the Medieval era. With the weight of at least four men behind it, this weapon proved to be effective. |
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Bayonet |
General |
At the end of the seventeenth century the French introduced the socket bayonet. This contained a sleeve fitting round the barrel and was locked into place with a slot and stud. This enabled the gun to be fired with the bayonet firmly secured in place. This type of bayonet was adopted by nearly all the Europeans armies. |
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Bearded axe |
European |
Large two-handed war axe used primarily in Europe; socketed metal head fitted to wooden handle |
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Bearded war axe |
European |
Smaller, one-handed version of the bearded axe; for use as a missile or while mounted; socketed metal head fitted to wooden handle |
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Bec-de-corbin |
European |
Type of war-hammer used in Europe in the 14th and 15th centuries; pick-like head was fitted with a spear like point for thrusting; normally mounted on a wooden haft with metal reinforcing bands extending down from the head |
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Beladah |
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Steel sword with a sabre like blade and a knuckle guard |
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Sumatra |
Curved dagger with a convex cutting edge. |
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Berdan |
Rifles |
ex-colonel Hiram Berdan of Berdan's Sharpshooters (American Civil War) supplied rifles including to the Russian Army which used them in the Russo-Turkish War of 1877. |
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Besagew |
European |
A large, sliding roundel, protecting a joint, such as the inside of the elbow or the armpit. |
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Besagues |
European |
Circular plates laced to the outside of the elbow joint and front of the shoulder to protect the joints in an armour |
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Bevor |
European |
Also called a baviere or beavor. The bevor was a 15th century piece of armour that protected the lower part of the face when worn with a sallet. It could be afixed to the helmet of the breastplate, and was often hinged, so that it could be lowered when not in use. |
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Bi Shou |
Chinese |
Dagger |
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Bian |
Chinese |
Short iron stick |
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Artillery |
In 1900 Alfred Krupp's armaments factory at Essen, Germany, began building a 350-mm howitzer that could fire an 800 lb shell over 10,000 yards. In 1908 the German Army asked Gustav Krupp to build an improved version of this gun with the capability of destroying the heaviest fortification. |
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Bilbo |
European |
Small thrusting sword with a rapierlike hilt |
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Biliong |
Malayan |
Malaysian axe/adze consisting of a square-tanged blade fitted into a wooden handle; blade can be placed in line with the handle for use as an axe or at right angles for use as an adze; handgrip is often quite large and the smaller portion of the handle is very flexible; socket into which the head is fitted is normally bound with cane |
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Bill |
Genera |
A pole weapon with a large chopping head, and often with a hook and backspike. Characteristically used by English infantry. |
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Binnol |
European |
Flail consisting of a spiked ball head connected to a wooden handle by a short chain |
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Bipennis |
European |
Double-bladed European war axe; mounted on a wooden haft |
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Bird's head club |
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Hardwood club with pick-like design as an attempt to improve the wounding capabilities of the weapon; often intricately carved |
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Birnie |
European |
(also called byrnie) a mail shirt |
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Bisacuta |
European |
Double-pointed pick used by European foot soldiers in the 14th century; metal head mounted on a wooden haft |
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Bisento |
Chinese |
A spear-like weapon with a blade resembling a scimitar affixed to its end. This weapon is extremely heavy, and was used to cut through armor and/or to cut down a horse in combat. The bisento was primarily used by the ninja of feudal Japan. |
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Bi-teran |
Australian |
Wooden club having a round handle and a flattened end |
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Bo |
Japanese |
Wooden staff approximately six feet long. It is one of the five weapons systematized by the early Okinawan developers of te (hand), and originated with the poles used by farm people to balance heavy loads across the shoulders. |
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Bokken |
Japanese |
Wooden sword used by the Japanese feudal warrior as a practice weapon. The bokken went on to become an effective battlefield weapon. |
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Bolas |
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Cord or leather thong with stones attached to each end; second cord with stone is attached to the center of the first to create a three-pronged weapon; weapon is spun around the head and then thrown at the target's legs |
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Bolt Action Rifle |
Rifles and Pistols |
This type of rifle had been invented by a Scottish immigrant to the United States, James Paris Lee. The bolt is the device that closes the breech of the barrel. The bolt-action rifle had a metal box, into which cartridges were placed on top of a spring. As the bolt was opened, the spring forced the cartridges up against a stop; the bolt pushed the top cartridge into the chamber as it closed. After firing, the opening of the bolt extracted the empty cartridge case, and the return stroke loaded a fresh round |
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Bolts |
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Shortened arrows used in crossbows & arbalests; small stocky missiles know for being capable of incredible penetration |
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Australian |
Wooden throwing stick with an effective range of about 20 meters |
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Boss |
General |
The round or cone-shaped metal plate at the center of a shield, protecting the hand. Also called an umbo. |
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Bouzdykan |
Polish |
All metal mace used (17th century) |
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Bow |
General |
The bow has been used throughout history by virtually every culture. Simple bows, as pictured here, were generally constructed of a single type and piece of wood. The shape of the bow back itself varied from culture to culture and lent different elastic properties to the weapon. The materials used in construction of the bow string varied, but the most common ones were flax, hemp, silk, cotton, and sinew (a combination of two or more of these was common). By bending the bow and attaching the bowstring to either end of the bow, the archer placed tension on the back. Nocking an arrow and drawing the string back placed greater tension on the bow. Releasing the arrow also released the tension energy built up in the bow and propelled the arrow farther and with greater force than it could be thrown. |
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Bracers |
European |
Plate armour for the arms |
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Braquemar |
European |
Sword with a short, double-edged blade. |
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Breaths |
General |
Holes in the visor or faceplate of a helmet to provide ventilation. |
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Breeches |
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Trousers reaching to the knees |
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Breidox |
Viking |
"broad axe" had a triangle-shaped blade. They are dated around 1000 AD, and were used exclusively as weapons. They were made out of hardened iron welded onto the shaft. They were sometimes decorated with silver and gold. |
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Brigandine |
European |
A type of coat-of-plates (see below) with hundreds of small, overlapping plates, providing great mobility at a slight cost in protection. Popular in the 15th and 16th centuries, the brigandine was usually worn over padding, but not mail. |
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Broad axe |
European |
European war axe having a broad, straight edge; head was socketed and attached to a wooden haft |
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Broadsword |
General |
A term popularly misapplied as a generic synonym for medieval swords. The now popular misnomer "broadsword" as a term for medieval blades actually originated with Victorian collectors in the early 19th century. |
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Browning
Machine-Gun |
Machine-Guns |
John Moses Browning was a highly successful gunsmith from Utah. Inspired by the work of Hiram Maxim Browning began work on an automatic machine-gun. Unlike Maxim used propelling gas as a motive force. He drilled a hole in the gun barrel to divert some of the gas behind the bullet into a cylinder to drive a piston, which performed the various tasks of extracting the cartridge case, reloading and firing. In 1895 the Browning machine-gun was purchased by the US Navy. |
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Buckler |
General |
A small round shield (9 - 18" in diameter) gripped in the hand with either a single handle, or two enarmes. The name buckler is a corruption of the Old French word bocler meaning boss, which refers to the boss or umbo at the center of the shield. It has become a matter of convenience to classify the buckler as a small, agile hand-shield. The definition is a convenient one to use but the reader should be aware that the ancients were not so pedantic about such definitions and used the term indifferently. Used since medieval times, bucklers were round or even square, approx. 8-20" and made of metal, wood, or metal trimmed wood. It was usually held in a fist grip and used to deflect or punch at blows and thrusts. The edge could also be used to strike and block. Some had long metal spikes on the front to attack with, or bars and hooks placed on the front to trap the point of an opponent's rapier. Italian "rondash" or "bochiero." |
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Buff-coat |
European |
A heavy coat of buff-leather, used a pikeman and gunner’s armour in the Renaissance, alone or under a breastplate. Buff-coats were also often worn as light protection when dueling with rapiers or swords. |
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Bulawa |
Russian |
All metal Russian mace |
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Bullova |
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Two-handed war axe that varies greatly in size but basically consists of a wide-bladed head attached to a wooden handle; some are fitted with a spike above the head for thrusting |
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Bullwhip |
General |
Woven leather whip normally used as an animal herding tool |
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Burgonet |
European |
An open-faced helmet with a crest and cheek-guards, used in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. |
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Burnoose |
European |
(burnous, burnouse) A sort of upper garment, with a hood attached. |
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Burrong |
Australian |
Wooden club from Australia with an axelike shape |
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Buskin |
European |
Footed leggings with thick sole made from expensive soft leathers and embroidered and brocaded fabrics. |
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Byrnie |
European |
A mail shirt, mid-thigh length, with elbow-length sleeves. This was the principal body defense for wealthy warriors from late Antiquity until the early 11th century. |
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Cabacete |
European |
Type of war hat popular in fifteenth century Europe with a turned-down brim which was drawn up to a point in the front and rear with an almond-shaped skull |
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Camail |
European |
A curtain of mail, hanging from the bottom of the helmet, as a defense for the chin, neck, throat and shoulders. |
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Campilan |
Malay |
Malaysian sword with a forked wooden pommel decorated with tufts of dyed hair; blade is single-edged, a curved projection behind the point |
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Cap-a-pie |
French |
An Old French expression, meaning to be armed from head-to-foot. |
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Carroballista |
Roman |
Roman army's mobile artillery piece. It improved upon the static arrow-shooting device by mounting it on a type of cart. |
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Casque |
European |
(also called casquetal) a light open helmet, these were often similar in shape to the burgonet and popular in the 15th and 16th centuries |
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European |
European whip used in flogging; leather thongs were usually knotted at their ends and were sometimes fitted with metal spikes to tear the flesh of the victim |
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Cervèllaire |
European |
Small skull cap worn under the great helmet (greathelm) during the last part of the 13th century and into the early 14th century |
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Cervelliere |
European |
Steel skull cap |
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Cestrosphendone |
European |
Sling dart consisting of a wooden pole with a leaf-shaped blade, attached behind were two or three fixed vanes of wood; sling was fitted at the tip and behind the vanes and the dart then spun above the head; effective range was about fifty meters |
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Cestus |
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Wide leather thongs, often weighted with lead; worn wound around the hands of Roman boxers |
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Cghchemarde |
European |
European fencing sword of the late 17th century; blade was triangular in section for about 20 centimeters from the hilt and then narrowed to a flat section for the remainder of its length, the design gave the blade great lightness and flexibility |
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Cha |
Chinese |
A metal folk with a long handle, used as weapon |
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Chainmail |
General |
Body armour made of interlinked rings of metal. |
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Chakram |
|
(shirikin) flat steel ring with a sharpened outer edge used as a thrown missile; several were often carried on a pointed turban; thrown like a frisbee |
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Chan |
Chinese |
Shovel |
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Chanfron |
European |
Armour for a horse's head |
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Chapel de fer |
European |
An iron cap that was a domed helmet, made in three or more pieces, with a wide brow around the outside. During the 14th century it was widely used by English and French men-at-arms and bachelier knights who could not afford a bascinet. |
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Chausses |
European |
Leggings. In the case of armour, mail leggings, tied to the belt by leather thongs, and usually worn over quilted chausses. |
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Chemeti |
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Whip normally made of buffalo leather or human hair and attached to a hardwood handle; a large knot is normally made in the end of the whip itself; overall length of the weapon can vary from 90 to 160 centimeters |
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Chereb |
|
Straight bronze sword with a double-edged blade |
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Chiang |
China |
"Spear." One of the major Chinese weapons practiced in wushu. |
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Chien |
Japanese |
A double-edged sword used in many styles of kung fu. Also known as the "gim" or "jyan." |
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Chijiriki |
Japanese |
Double-edged spear with a weighted chain attached to the butt end; two-handed weapon |
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Chui |
Chinese |
A metal ball with a handle or chain used as weapon |
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Chundrick |
|
A sword with an incurved steel blade and a straight hilt |
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Circlet |
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A circular band worn as an ornament on the finger, arm, neck or head |
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Claw hammer |
General |
Typical carpenter's tool; metal head fitted to a wooden handle |
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Claymore |
Gaelic |
Identified with the Scot's symbol of the warrior, the term "Claymore" is Gaelic for "claidheamh-more" (great sword). This two-handed broadsword was used by the Scottish Highlanders against the English in the 16th century and is often confused with a Basket-hilt "broadsword" (a relative of the Italian schiavona) whose hilt completely enclosed the hand in a cage- like guard. Both swords have come to be known by the same name since the late 1700's. |
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Cleaver |
General |
A cleaver, etymologically, dervives from the verb cleave: to cut, split, sever, disunite, or divide by a blow. A cleaver ... cleaves. While primarily a butcher's implement, a number of weapons throughout the world, particularly in northern Africa and the middle east, share a striking resemblance in form and function to the kitchen cleaver |
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Clipei |
Roman |
Roman Oval shield |
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Close-helmet |
European |
A form of close-fitting, full helmet, of the 16th and 17th centuries. The close helm clearly derived from the armet, which it supplanted. |
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Club |
General |
Clubs have been around as for as long as mankind has walked erect. Styles of clubs range from simple sticks to elaborately carved works of art. Bashing weapons used to inflict concussion blows rather than piercing ones, clubs are effective against all opponents, armored or not. The most recent forms of the mace weapon are simply derivations of the club concept. |
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Coat-armour |
European |
An overgarment of the late Middle Ages, particularly popular in tournament, that showed the wearer’s heraldry, or that of his lord. |
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Coat-of-Plates |
European |
Steel, bone, or hardened leather plates riveted or sewn inside a leather or heavy fabric covering, to provide a flexible form of plate armour. In the late 13th and 14th centuries, the coat-of-plates would have been worn over a mail haubergeon. |
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Coif |
European |
A hood of fabric or mail, worn under the helmet. |
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Composite Bow |
General |
The name composite bow was descriptive of a bow constructed of three basic layers of different materials, usually wood, bone, and sinew. Composite bows were constructed in a fairly labor-intensive process. Basically, bone and sinew layers were applied to a wood core; each layer would enhance the elasticity of the others. The wood core generally consisted of three pieces: one for the upper part of the bow, one for the lower part, and the hand grip. Two strips of horn would be glued to the belly (side toward the archer) of the wood core, and a strip of sinew would be glued to the back (side toward the target) of the wood core. The elastic properties of these materials working together allowed a smaller bow to fire an arrow farther and with greater force. Turkish composite bows were considered to be the world’s best bows until synthetic materials were used in bow construction, just this century. The greatest distances for an arrow shot from a composite bow were recorded in the 19th century: 660 yards for special arrows, and 440 yards (1/4 mile) for war arrows. |
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Compound bow |
General |
Compound bows were invented in 1966 in the USA. This is by far the most popular bow type in use today. The bow has off-centered pulleys at each end. Steel or other material cables are fixed at the end of each limb. These pass around the pulley at the opposite end (directly or via another linked cable). The free ends of the cables leaving the pulleys are joined together with a bowstring. The pulleys provide a mechanical advantage that makes the bow easier to draw and to hold at full draw. A compound is more powerful and shorter than a recurve. It has a wide bow window enabling the arrow to be centre shot. Many compound archers use additional shooting aids such as a telescopic sight with a horizontal spirit level, a back sight fitted within the string (called a peep sight), a draw length limiter and a mechanical release aid for holding and releasing the string. Owing to the power of the bow and the shooting aids, the compound bow is the most accurate of the three types of bow described. |
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Compound-hilt |
European |
A term used for the various forms of swept, basket, and cage hilts found on Renaissance swords. The compound hilt is comprised of the quillon, side-rings, and a knuckle bar in a variety of configurations. |
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Corslet |
European |
(also called corselet) a light half-armour popular in the sixteenth century for general military use; consisted of a gorget, breast, back and tassets, full arms and guantlets |
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Cote armour |
European |
Quilted garment worn over a breastplate, cote of plates, or as the sole body defense during the 14th century. |
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Cote of arms |
|
A word that seems to have been interchangeable meaning a cote armour blazoned with a device, or a surcoat bearing the heraldic charge of a man's affiliation. Because it was the most visible expression of a knight's arms, the word has come to mean the heraldic device itself rather than the cote upon which it was sewn, painted, or embroidered. |
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Cote of plates |
|
(pair of plates, plates) A cloth or leather covered armour for the body with several large plates riveted underneath for the defense of the body. |
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Coupe-coupe |
African |
weapon used by the Amazones in Dahomey against the French Foreign Legionaries |
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Couteau-Coutelace/Culter-Cultello |
Genera |
A knife or dagger. It is important to remember that in the middle ages, these weapons were commonly much larger than their modern counterparts. |
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Couter |
European |
Plate armour protecting the elbow. Often fitted with a besagew. |
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Craoseach |
Irish |
13-14th century Irish term for a long spear. Unlike the javelin, this weapon was not designed to be thrown. |
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Craquemarte |
European |
Heavy sword with a curved blade and a knuckle guard; generally used at sea |
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Crest |
|
Heraldic device worn on helm |
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Crossbow |
General |
Also referred to as an arbalest, the crossbow was seen as early as 1066 but didn’t become popular for about another century. The first crossbows were constructed entirely of wood but later models incorporated animal cartilage in the yew wood frame for elasticity. The original crossbows were actually very poor weapons: very slow to load, prone to misfires, and overly complicated for the generally mechanically disinclined population of the period. As technology improved during the middle ages and mechanical devices were developed for loading and aiming crossbows, their use and popularity increased. |
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Cross-guard |
European |
The steel, cross-piece between the hand and blade of a Medieval sword. |
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Crowbill |
General |
The crowbill is the weapon collectors’ term for the fighting pick pictured here, named for its resemblance to the bill of a crow. The most elaborate and best crafted weapons of the crowbill type were from Persia and India. The crowbill and similar picks were designed specifically to pierce through chain mail armor and plate mail joints |
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General |
The cudgel was basically a specialized club used as an instrument of punishment or as a weapon. Cudgels were generally shorter than Quarterstaffs with a weighted, rounded end (it wasn't uncommon to have the end of the cudgel bound with metal, wire, or spiked through with nails). Slave drivers, constabulary officials, and others in similar positions where quick "discipline" was a must carried cudgels. |
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Cuirass |
European |
A full, plate body-armour, comprised of a breastplate, backplate, and sometimes, tassets. |
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Cuirbouilli |
European |
Leather, hardened by boiling in water, used as a material for armour, particularly in the 13th and 14th centuries. |
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Cuisse |
European |
Armour for the thighs. Early cuises were simply quilted garments, like an aketon, but term also later applied to plate defenses. |
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Cuisses |
EuropeanEuropean |
Plate armour pieces protecting the thighs |
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Cumber-jung |
Indian |
Flail made by attaching two heavy quoits to a short handle of wood by chains |
|
European |
The spada filo or spada da lato of the Italian Renaissance masters. The sword was a thinner, more tapered sword than the earlier Medieval forms, but still shorter and wider than the nearly edgeless rapier. They were used for hacking, slashing, stabbing, and had compound hilts used to employ a "fingered" grip. Unlike the later rapier, which was wholly a civilian weapon, the cut & thrust sword was a military weapon that became popular for civilian use until superseded by the rapier. Various forms of later military cut & thrust swords include the: schiavona, spadroon, hanger, and Espadon. |
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|
General |
The cutlass developed after the 16th century as a purely cutting/slashing weapon. By definition, the cutlass was a curved European blade with a plain, guarded hilt, similar in shape and use to the saber. The cutlass descended in design from the Turkish scimitar and Egyptian khopesh; in fact, the name cutlass derives from the term curtle-axe which is an Anglicization of the Turkish “curtus” and axe. Cutlasses were most popular among naval infantry soldiers |
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Da Dao |
Chinese |
Great saber |
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Daab |
Thai |
A Thai sword used in Krabi Krabong. |
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Dabus |
|
Mace that consists of a piece of wood studded with nails |
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Dagger |
General |
A knife, usually in the form of a sword. Daggers came a variety of forms, with both single and double edged varieties. Like swords, were usually fitted with a pommel and guard, and throughout the late Middle Ages and Renaissance, also developed progressively more complex hilts. |
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Dagger mace |
European |
European mace/pick made entirely of steel; shaped to look like a hand holding a dagger |
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Daisho |
Japanese |
"Big and small." Two swords, one long and the other short, worn by the samurai class in feudal Japan |
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Daito |
Japanese |
A long sword, whose cutting edge, was over 24 inches in length, as contrasted with such shorter swords as the wakizashi (18 inches.) |
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Dalwel |
Burmese |
Burmese two-handed sword with a tanged steel blade; sword has a heavy, square-ended blade fitted into an unguarded hilt of wood or ivory; consists of a slightly curved, single-edged blade fitted into an unguarded wooden hilt |
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Dao |
Chinese |
Single-edged sword |
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Dao Bei |
Chinese |
Back of sword blade |
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Dart |
Genera |
See Javelin |
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Dha |
|
Sword with a broad blade and a plain, unguarded handle |
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Dhara |
|
Mace having six blades; made entirely of steel with a padded hilt |
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Dirk |
General |
Long, usually single-edged dagger |
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Dolabra |
Roman |
Axe-like tool/weapon used by legionnaires; socketed head attached to a wooden handle |
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Doloire |
European |
(wagoner's axe) battle axe used in the 15th century; socketed steel head is fitted to a wooden haft |
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Doublet |
European |
A man's close-fitting jacket with or without sleeves, worn chiefly from the 14th to 16th centuries |
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Dowak |
|
Flat throwing stick |
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Dorset |
Drashel or Dreshel is Dorset slang for a flial: Two pieces of wood joined by a leather thong or short metal chain and used for threshing. One piece of wood is held and the other then swung. |
|
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Duan Dao |
Chinese |
Short saber |
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Duan Jian |
Chinese |
Dirk |
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Dusack |
|
Weapon made of a single piece of iron with a curved blade and guarded hilt |
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Eccat |
|
Sword with a deer horn hilt and no guard |
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Elephant axe |
African |
Large two-handed axe used to ham-string elephants; iron head is fitted into the wooden handle by means of a tang |
|
European |
Leather straps used to grip a shield or buckler. |
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Epaule de mouton |
|
Steel defense for the complete arm; developed during the 15th and 16th centuries; used exclusively in jousts |
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Epsilon axe |
Middle East |
(eye axe) early axe form used in the ancient Middle East; head of cast copper or bronze was fitted into a wooden handle by tangs; broad head made it suitable for use against unarmoured foes since its penetration capabilities were not great |
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Espada |
Spanish |
Spanish for sword. |
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Espadon |
European |
Two-handed sword of the 15th century |
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Espee/Epee |
French |
Old French and Modern French terms for sword, respectively. |
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Estoc |
European |
A form of long, rigid, pointed, triangular or square bladed and virtually edgeless longsword designed for thrusting into plate-armor was the estoc. Called a "stocco" in Italian and a "tuck" in English, they were used with two hands - similar to great-swords. They were used in two hands with the second hand often gripping the blade. Rapiers are sometimes mistakenly referred to as tucks, and may have been referred to as such by the English. |
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Fakir's horns |
Indian |
Weapon made of horns; some have spear points attached to the ends of the horns |
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Falcata |
Roman |
Forward-curving single-edged sword |
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Falchion |
European |
A single-edged, heavy-bladed sword, usually widening noticeably towards the tip. A form of sword that was little more than a meat cleaver, possibly even a simple kitchen and barnyard tool adopted for war. Indeed, it may come from a French word for a sickle, "fauchon". It can be seen in Medieval art being used by warriors of all stations, especially in close quarters fighting. The weapon is entirely European in origin, and is similar to the German "dusack," and has been linked to the Dark Age long knife or "seax." The falchion was used throughout the Middle Ages, predominantly by foot soldiers, but occasionally as a side-arm for mounted knights. More common in the Renaissance, it was considered a weapon to be proficient with in addition to the sword. The falchion appeared in several forms, but mostly all forms have a single edge and rounded point or "clipped" point. This wide, heavy blade was weighted more towards the point, and could deliver tremendous blows, making it ideal for combating heavy armours. |
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Falx |
Dacian |
The falx is a curved cutlass-like blade on the end of a long wooden (almost spear-like) handle. Unlike a cutlass, however, the falx is sharpened along the inner curve of the blade, so that the damage on the blow is done with a pulling motion. |
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Fang |
Chinese |
All iron weapon with two double-edged blades at the end |
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Fauld |
|
Skirt of overlapping lames riveted to leather and protecting the wearer below the waist, usually attached to a breastplate |
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Firangi |
|
Straight-bladed sword; the hilts were padded and fitted with spiked pommels |
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Fish Spine Sword |
India |
This is a difficult weapon to place firmly in a particular time or culture. India had a "fish spine" sword made of a metal ,comb-like blade which inflicted extremely devastating wounds to unprotected flesh. Most likely, though, the Indians developed their blade based on a weapon from New Guinea, pictured here. The New Guinea fish spine sword was made from the snout of the saw-fish, a shark common to waters throughout the Pacific. The barbs are teeth-like and very sharp. One end of the snout would be carved into a handle and then wrapped with leather or cloth. A full blow from this sturdy weapon could easily bisect or behead an opponent. |
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Fist mace |
European |
Iron or steel mace shaped like a clenched fist |
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Flagellum |
Roman |
Three-pronged whip but was ineffective against heavy armor |
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Flail |
Genera |
A mace that has the weight connected to the handle by a chain. Commonly called a "morning star" when the weight is spiked, though this may not be historically accurate. In Bohemia, this usually refers to a huge two-handed version that had a short, (~1.5 feet) wooden iron-wrapped weight connected to a 5-8 foot-long handle, which was capable of killing a plate-armored man in a single blow, but was very slow and heavy. |
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Flamberge |
European |
An unusual waved-bladed rapier popular with officers and upper classes during the 1600s. It was considered to look both fashionable and deadly as well as erroneously believed to inflict a more deadly wound. When parrying with the flamberge, the opponent's sword was slowed slightly as it passed along the length. It also created a disconcerting vibration in the other blade. The term flamberge was also used later to describe a dish-hilted rapier with a normal straight blade. Certain wave or flame-bladed two-handed swords have also come to be known by collectors as "flamberges", although this is inaccurate. Such swords are more appropriately known as "flammards" or "flambards". |
|
General |
By the middle ages, many European maces were all metal construction. Flanges, spikes, and similar pointed protrusions were added to combat plate and mail armor. The force of a blow, concentrated on the tip of a flange or spike, was very effective at denting and piercing armor. |
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Flat club |
Samoan |
Hardwood club, often elaborately carved; sharp edges on the head to improve effectiveness |
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Fletching |
General |
Feathers fastened onto the back of an arrow to help it fly straight |
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Fleuret |
European |
Fencing sword with a cup hilt |
|
|
Sword with a straight-backed blade with a long point; often the blades are inlaid with bronze |
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Footman's Lance |
General |
The footman's lance was essentially a spear used solely for thrusting. Generally, lances were considered to be a cavalry weapon but foot soldiers used a smaller version of them during the iron age throughout the known world. The main difference between a spear-proper and a footman's lance is that spears were often designed such that the spear tip broke off upon impact with the target. Lances, conversely, were designed such that the tip would not break off in the hands of the wielder. Other than that, though, a footman's lance is a spear |
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Fou Tou Ou |
China |
A sword used in kung fu, known as the "hook and crescent" sword. |
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Francisca |
|
(axe/missle) from 6th-8th centuries it was normally used as a missile; standard tactic was to hurl it at an enemy and then charge in with sword or spear; consists of a socketed, iron head attached to a wooden haft; effective range was about 15 meters when thrown |
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Fu |
China |
Battle axe. |
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Fuchi |
Japanese |
The metal sleeve located at the base of the handle next to the guard of a samurai sword. |
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Fukidake |
|
A blowpipe not normally used in combat but rather to poison opponents; about two meters in length, darts were fitted with paper cones on the ends to ensure an airtight fit; mouthpiece was fitted off to the side of the main tube, a feature which prevented the accidental inhaling of the dart; effective range was approximately ten meters |
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Fukiya |
Japanese |
Pins and poison darts shot through a blowgun. |
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Full moon |
|
Parrying weapon consisting of a steel ring attached to a handle with two curved blades fitted to either end; outer edges of the ring and the blades are sharpened |
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Fuller |
|
Broad groove running down the center of each side of some sword blades (usually to make the sword lighter in weight, not to allow a "channel"for blood to drip off the sword as commonly thought) |
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Gada |
|
Mace of wood with a stone head; normally the head is bound to the handle |
|
General |
A gaff was and still is a hand-held metal hook with a sharp tip used to latch onto an object, usually for the purposes of moving it. Most commonly, a gaff was a meathook used in pairs by butchers to move large slabs of meat. Farmers have also used gaffs in pairs to move bales of hay. Fishermen used a gaff attached to a long pole to help lift heavy catches from the water. |
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Gala |
|
Sword with a carved wooden handle and no guard |
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Galraki |
|
Axe with socketed iron head, attached to a wooden handle |
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Gambeson |
European |
Sometimes used to refer to the aketon, the gambeson more commonly in the period referred to a quilted and decorated coat-armour of the late 14th century, worn over the breastplate, or alone. |
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Gamboised |
|
A padded defense made of linen, flax or other fabric, sometimes reinforced and studded. Gamboised cuisses were often worn as an early addition to mail chausses during the late 13th and early 14th centuries. |
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Ganeugaodusha |
Indian |
Deer-horn club |
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Ganjing |
|
All iron club |
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Gardebras |
European |
A full arm-harness, comprised of the couter, vambrace and rerebrace. |
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Gardner Machine Gun |
Machine-Guns |
In 1879 the Gardner Machine Gun was demonstrated for the first time. A two-barrelled weapon operated by crank which loaded and fired each barrel in turn. The feed system was a grooved strip into which the rims of a box of cartridges could be slid, after which the box was removed. In public trials the gun fired 10,000 rounds in 27 minutes |
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Gargaz |
Indian |
Mace with six to ten blades on the head made of steel, had padded hand guards, and sometimes were richly engraved |
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Garz |
Indian |
All steel mace with no hilt; head is rather small and has many flanges |
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Gatling Gun |
Machine-Guns |
In 1861 Richard Jordan Gatling, a trained dentist from North Carolina, produced an effective mechanical gun. The Gatling Gun consisted of six barrels mounted in a revolving frame. The United States Army purchased these guns in 1865 and over the next few years most major armies in Europe purchased the gun. The British Army tested it at Woolwich in 1870, and found that the 0.42 Gatling Gun fired 616 shots in two minutes. Of these, 369 hit their intended targets. |
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Gatlings |
|
Small joint defense on a finger gauntlet, usually attached to a leather or canvas base by sewing or by rivets |
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Gauntlet |
General |
An armoured glove, often formed of a single plate for the back of the hand, and smaller overlapping plates for the fingers, enabling them to move easily. |
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Ge |
Chinese |
Dagger-axe |
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Genuillieres |
Europe |
Plate pieces to protect the knee. |
|
Roman |
The Legions patterned their short swords after those of the Spanish Celts. The historian, Polybius, says they were introduced into the army during the second Punic War. The Gladius of Caesar's time until Tiberius had a slight curve in the edge of the blade. The Fulham type and the Pompeii type had edges which were completely parallel. This sword was intended as a thrusting weapon. This was the best way to use a sword in tight formation. Using the sword in a slashing motion would cause the soldier to open his side to attack. The Gladius was replaced by the traditional long swords of the barbarians in the late empire |
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Glaive/gisarme/sudlice |
General |
(cz.,pol,Lith.) A pole weapon with a spear-like cutting blade, usually single-edged and relatively light. Commonly used on horseback by Lithuanian and late Byzantine cavalry. |
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Goddara |
Turkish |
Sword with a curved blade and padded hilt; often highly decorated |
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Godentag |
Flemish |
See Bill |
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Goliah |
Indian |
Heavy sword with a padded hilt and spiked pommel; blade is often engraved and inlaid |
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Gorget |
European |
A close-fitting plate defense for the neck, throat, and upper chest. |
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Goupillon |
European |
Steel, three-pronged horseman's flail used; head could be spiked or plain |
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Great bascinet |
|
Late 14th early 15th century version of the bascinet where the mail aventail was replaced with two steel plates, one in the front and one in back. |
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Great Helm/helmet |
European |
The first helmet in the Middle Ages to be a fully closed, heavy helmet. Usually made of four or five iron plats riveted together, and worn over a mail coif, and sometimes a small steel skull-cap. Great helms first appeared in the last decade of the 12th century, and became wide-spread in the 13th and early 14th centuries. They remained the dominant form of tournament helmet into the Renaissance, becoming progressively heavier and more massive. After 1420, the helms came down to the shoulders and were bolted to the chest and back. |
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Great Sword |
European |
Term for a sword that was sufficiently long and heavy that it required two hands. Usually designed for cutting, but later also modified for thrusting into the gaps of plate armor. The term "great-sword" has come to mean a form of long-sword that is still not the specialized weapons of later two-handed swords. Length was usually measured against the wielder's body - usually from somewhere between the diaphragm to the armpit. Blade shape could be flat and wide, or narrow and hexagonal, or diamond shaped. These larger swords were capable of facing heavier weapons such as pole-arms and larger axes, and were devastating against light armour. |
|
Greaves |
General |
Plate pieces to protect the shin and calf., usually in front, then later at the back as well. |
|
Greek Fire |
Roman |
The secret weapon of the Eastern Roman Emperors. It is said to have been invented by a Syrian Engineer, one Callinicus, a refugee from Maalbek, in the seventh century (673 AD). The "liquid fire" was hurled on to the ships of their enemies from siphons and burst into flames on contact. As it was reputed to be inextinguishable and burned even on water, it caused panic and dread. Its introducation into warfare of its time was comparable in its demoralizing influence to the introducation of nuclear weapons in our time. Both Arab and Greek sources agree that it surpassed all incendiary weapons in destruction. The secret behind the Greek fire was handed down from one emperor to the next for centuries. Rumors about its composition include such chemicals as liquid petroleum, naphtha, burning pitch, sulphur, resin, quicklimeand bitumen, along with some other "secret ingredient". The exact composition, however, remains unknown |
|
General |
Grenades first began being used in the 16th century. Originally they were hollow iron balls filled with gunpowder and ignited by a slow burning match. To be effective, soldiers had to be able to throw them over 100 feet and the tall, strong soldiers selected for this task became known as grenadiers. |
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|
Guard chain |
European |
These chains were used to hold the sword and dagger or the great helm of a knight, in order not to lose them in battle. |
|
Guige |
European |
The strap which slings a shield from the shoulders or neck |
|
Guisearme |
General |
Also called the gisarme and bisarme. A medieval European polearm used predominantly between the 11th and 15th centuries, the guisarme had a long curved bladed edged on the concave side, with a slender spear point opposite it. The guisarme could be used to thrust at an oncoming opponent, slash, and even topple a rider |
|
Japanese |
A rigid iron or wooden fan carried by generals in battle and used today by sumo referees as a symbol of authority. |
|
|
Japanese |
Folding war fan with iron sticks used by the Japanese as a parrying weapon |
|
|
Habergeon (haubergeon) |
European |
Mail coat, smaller than a hauberk |
|
Haces/Hache/Hachete |
European |
War axe for infantry, used in one hand. |
|
Hachiwara |
|
Weapon normally consisted of a slightly curved, square-sectioned bar with a hook near the grip; used as a parrying weapon |
|
Haik |
Arab |
(hyke) large piece of woolen or cotton cloth worn by Arabs as an outer |
|
Haketon |
|
Leather jacket, sometimes reinforced with mail |
|
Halab |
|
Sword with a double- grooved blade and a padded hilt |
|
Halasan |
|
Sword with a cylindrical hilt made of horn and no guard |
|
Halberd |
European |
Long pole weapon, usually with an axe blade, a long spike (which could be relatively short for stabbing, or made long and edged like a sword blade), and a backspike. Used widely and to great effect against cavalry by the Swiss before they shifted to the pike. |
|
Hammer |
|
A weapon consisting of a hammer head on one side and a spike on the other, sometimes mounted on a short handle for use in one hand and other times mounted on a short shaft for use in foot combats. Warhammers and poleaxes were popularly used in judicial duels or in combats associated with points of honor. |
|
Hammer of Kai |
European |
See Lucerne Hammer |
|
Hanbo |
Japanese |
A three foot wooden staff. |
|
Hand Axe |
General |
The hand axe was a variation of the axe which probably found its first use as a hatchet or similar woodsman's tool. Normally carried as a secondary weapon, the hand axe was a good, fast fighting weapon which required no great skill or strength to employ. Being light, it wasn't as effective against an armored opponent as an axe or great axe were, but it was nonetheless a very versatile weapon. |
|
Han-dachi |
Japanese |
Japanese sword used with either one or two hands; fitted with a small, roughly circular hand guard; carried thrust into the belt with the blade facing upwards |
|
Harness |
European |
The common Medieval term for armour. |
|
Hasta |
Roman |
The hasta was the Roman trusting spear. It was carried by the units called triarii in Republic times. Marius military reforms made the pilum the standard spear carried by all legionaries |
|
Hatchet |
General |
Common woodcutter's tool; socketed metal head is attached to a wooden handle |
|
Haubergen |
European |
Shorter version of the hauberk, a shirt made of mail, usually laced down the sides |
|
Haubergeon |
European |
A hauberk with the long skirts removed, so that it ended between crotch and mid-thigh length, usually with a jagged-hem. The mail coat was worn in this form in the 14th and 15th centuries, usually under some form of plate defense. |
|
Hauberk |
European |
A long coat of mail, knee-length or longer, initially with half-sleeves, which by the 12th century, had extended to the wrist. Later, the hauberk sleeve became even closer fitting and ended in mail mittens called mufflers. Although there is a clear distinction between the hauberk and haubergeon, in early writings the two terms were used interchangeably. The hauberk of mail was the principle body armour of the 11th - 13th centuries. |
|
Heater shield |
General |
Semi-cylindrical shield with a flat top edge |
|
Herebra |
Phoenician |
Phoenician sword with a double-edged, leaf-shaped blade OR straight-bladed Bornean sword with a guardless wooden hilt |
|
Hoeroa |
General |
Whalebone club with a double-curved blade and carved handle |
|
Hojutsu |
Japanese |
The art of firearms or gunnery. |
|
Holy water sprinkler |
European |
Morningstar mace made of wood and having numerous spikes projecting from the head |
|
Hoolurge |
|
Axe/pick made of steel; often elaborately carved or engraved |
|
Hora |
|
Horn knuckle-duster |
|
Horseman's hammer |
|
War hammer made of iron or steel, used by mounted fighters |
|
Machine-Guns |
Benjamin Hotchkiss was born in Watertown, Connecticut in 1826. He invented an improved type of cannon shell, a revolving-barrel machine gun (1872) and a bolt-action magazine rifle (1875). |
|
|
Houpelande |
|
A garment common to nobility during end of the 14th century; characterized by long flowing sleeves, sometimes dagged in many interesting patterns. Often worn as court attire and later adopted in place of the surcoat, particularly in Germany during the late 14th century. |
|
Howitzer |
Artillery |
Howitzers fire heavy shells on a high trajectory through a short barrel |
|
Hul-tho |
|
Bladed rope |
|
Hunga-munga |
|
Hooked throwing knife; blade is double-edged, and the handle is covered in rawhide |
|
Hurlbat |
European |
Iron throwing axe |
|
Ice pick |
|
Small tool consisting of a thin metal spike fitted into a wooden handle |
|
Iverapena |
|
Paddle club made of hardwood and slightly pointed |
|
Iwatajinga |
|
Club consisting of a stone head attached to a wooden handle |
|
Jack |
European |
A cheap defensive coat of fabric or leather, with small plates sandwiched and stitched between its layers. |
|
Jadagna |
|
Club made of ironwood; sometimes fitted with a stone or metal spike in the head |
|
Jambard |
|
See Greaves |
|
Japurunga |
|
Wooden club with a double-pronged head |
|
Javelin |
General |
A short throwing spear, used as a shock weapon |
|
Jaweti |
|
Square-sectioned club made of hardwood |
|
Jeddart Axe |
European |
See Lochaner Axe |
|
Jerkin |
|
1. a short, close-fitting coat or jacket, often sleeveless, worn in the 16th and 17th centuries 2. a short, sleeveless vest worn by women and girls |
|
Ji |
Chinese |
Halberd |
|
Jian |
Chinese |
Mace |
|
Jitte |
Japanese |
Japanese parrying weapon consisting of an iron bar with a hook attached to one side; grip is often woven cord or leather |
|
Jo |
Japanese |
Wooden staff slightly longer than the katana |
|
Jumgheerdha |
|
Straight-bladed sword with a padded hilt and hand guard |
|
Jupon |
European |
A short, fitted surcoat, worn over armour in the 14th and early 15th centuries. Made of several thicknesses of fabric, the other layer was often a rich velvet or silk, with the owner’s arms embroidered or appliquéd on. |
|
Jutte |
Oriental |
A forked iron truncheon that can parry an attack by a sword. |
|
Kabuto |
Japanese |
The helmet worn by the Japanese samurai. It was made of iron or laquered leather, and was secured to the head by a series of silk cords. |
|
Kadjo |
|
Stone-headed axe; stone head consists of two parts attached to the wooden handle by tree resin; one of the stones is blunt and the other sharp so the tool can be wielded as either a hammer or an axe |
|
Kagi yari |
Japanese |
"Key spear." A hooked spear used for parrying and hooking an opponent's weapon. Like the jutte, it was useful to the police in making arrests. |
|
Kaiken |
Japanese |
"Short knife." A six-inch knife used by women of the samurai class. |
|
Kalus |
|
Whip commonly made of buffalo hide or rattan and fitted to a handle of wood |
|
Kama |
|
Sickle consisting of a tanged steel head fitted into a wooden handle; fighting style often utilizes two kamas, one in each hand |
|
Kama yari |
Japanese |
A spear to which a single-edged, sickle-shaped blade is attached. |
|
Kamcha |
|
Whip made of leather or cord attached to a wooden handle and often elaborately decorated |
|
Kan sin ke |
Chinese |
whipping chain made of short metal bars joined together with links; two-handed weapon |
|
Kangaroo rat |
Australian |
(weet-weet) slender, wooden throwing stick with conical points on each end; thrown by swinging it back and forth several times and then letting go with a under-hand jerk; effective range is about 25 meters |
|
Kantschar |
|
Steel Russian sword with a thin blade and drooping quillions |
|
Kapak |
|
Small throwing axe consists of a tanged metal head fitted into a flat wooden handle |
|
Karabela |
Turkish |
Turkish, and later Polish, sword consisting of a curved blade, short quillions and curved hilt; often this weapon was highly decorated |
|
Kaskara |
|
A straight, broad-bladed sword with a cross shaped hilt |
|
Kasrullah |
|
Club made of wood |
|
Kastane |
|
Sword often had European blades which were slightly curved and single-edged; handle, pommel, and ends of the quillions are carved in the form of monsters' heads; entire hilt is often made of silver or gold and inlaid with jewels |
|
Katana |
Japanese |
"Sword." A Japanese sword, with a curved, single-edged blade twenty-four to thirty-six inches long. |
|
Katti |
|
A heavy, curved single-edged blade attached to an unguarded hilt; carried unsheathed in the back from a belt |
|
Kauah |
|
Cylindrical stone throwing club |
|
Kauw |
|
Parrying weapon, usually used with one in each hand; a wooden staff with a sharp semicircular blade fitted to one end; metal hand guard consisting of two half-moon shaped blades connected by a crossbar |
|
Kawanaga |
Japanese |
Iron grapple attached to a long rope used to assist in climbing, tying up prisoners or a horse, or as an entanglement weapon; two handed if used as weapon |
|
Keerli |
|
Stone axe consists of a sharpened stone glued onto a wooden handle |
|
Keibo |
Japanese |
A wooden club used by the Japanese police. |
|
Kerrie |
|
Wooden or horn throwing stick; end is sometimes sharpened and used for stabbing |
|
Kettle hat |
European |
Open faced helmet type with a broad brim, nearly identical to the civil defense helmets of the 20th century, or those of English “doughboys” in the First World War. The kettle-hat was common defense from the 12th through 15th centuries. |
|
Khanda |
|
Sword consists of a curved blade with a broad, sometimes blunt, tip; hilt is padded; a spike on the end of the pommel acts as an arm guard and a grip for delivering two-handed blows |
|
Kharga |
|
Sacrificial axe made of steel and usually elaborately carved and engraved |
|
Kheten |
Egyptian |
Two-handed axe; bronze head was fitted into the wooden haft |
|
Egyptian |
The khopesh (khopsh) was an ancient Egyptian weapon which first became popular beginning with the period when upper and lower Egypt were united under one pharaoh. The khopesh design was devastatingly effective and changed the development of edged weapons around the known world. |
|
|
Kiam bokiam |
Chinese |
Fighting and parrying metal stick with a hand guard |
|
Killj |
|
Sword with a curved blade fitted with a pistol grip handle |
|
Kirasoo |
Indian |
Ironwood spiral throwing stick |
|
Kirtle |
|
1. a short skirt worn by women 2. a long gown or dress worn by women 3. a long tunic worn by men |
|
Kiseru |
|
Iron smoking pipe; also used to parry sword strikes, as well as deliver counter attacks against a foe because of its metal construction |
|
Klappvisier |
|
The first visored defense for the bascinet. The klappvisier featured a pointed (pignose) or rounded (roundnose) snout to deflect arrows and bolts and a raised area around the eyes. It first defended the area of the face not already defended by the aventail. |
|
Kledyv |
Welsh |
Ancient sword with a leaf-shaped blade |
|
Klewang |
|
Sword with a straight steel blade and an angled hilt; hilt is generally unguarded and carved |
|
Knuckle duster |
|
Iron bar with finger holes in it to give weight to a punch; similar to modern 'brass knuckles' |
|
Knuckledusters |
General |
Metal reinforcements worn on the hand designed to cause maximum damage in fist fighting |
|
Kodachi |
Japanese |
"Small sword." A forerunner of the wakizashi, that boasts a blade between twelve and eighteen inches. |
|
Kodelly |
|
Axe consisting of a socketed steel head attached to a wooden handle; normally used as protection against animals |
|
Kojiri |
Japanese |
The chape or end cap of the scabbard of a samurai sword. |
|
Konnung |
|
Straight, wooden stick from held in the center and used for stabbing |
|
Kontos |
Persian |
the large spear/lance that was used by for instance the Sassanid-Persians (and many other horse-people). The essential difference between "kontos" and "lance" is, that the latter can be used "couched". But of course that is only possible with stirrups |
|
Greek |
Known to the Greeks as the kopis and Romans as the falcata. The kopis sword was predominantly a cutting weapon, similar to a machaira, but with a convex cutting edge of the blade, much like the modern Ghurka kukri. Its heavy, curved blade was large enough to make it the ideal weapon for both infantry and cavalry. |
|
|
Kotiate |
|
Club that is elaborately carved; known to be highly prized heirlooms; were often given names by their owners; club was made of wood or whalebone and shaped somewhat like a violin |
|
Kris |
|
A double-edged, wavy-bladed knife/short sword designed primarily for thrusting |
|
Kui Jia |
Chinese |
Helmet and armor |
|
Kujerong |
|
Wooden club with a heavy, rounded end |
|
kunai |
Japanese |
A Kunai is an ancient kind of trowel, originated during the Tensho Era in Japan. The kunai was normally wrought of iron, not steel, cheaply forged and unpolished. The size of most kunai ranged from 20 cm to 60 cm, with the average at 40 cm. The kunai was used by common folk as multi-purpose gardening tools and by workers of stone and masonry. The kunai is not a knife, but something more akin to a wrecking bar. The blade was soft iron and unsharpened because the edges were used to smash plaster and wood, to dig holes and to pry. Normally only the tip would have been sharpened. The uses to which a kunai was put would have destroyed any heat-treated and sharpened tool like a knife. |
|
Kunnin |
|
Wooden throwing stick |
|
Kusari fundo |
Japanese |
A small chain with weighted ends. |
|
Kusarigama |
Japanese |
A chain-sickle weapon, noted for its efficiency in neutralizing the sword at long range. |
|
Kyoketsu-shogi |
Japanese |
Ninja parrying weapon; a rope connects a metal ring and a forked knife, could also be used to aid in climbing; used with both hands |
|
Kyudo |
Japanese |
KYUDO is Japanese bowmanship. It is one of the traditional BUDO (martial) arts developed from the military skills of the old times Japanese warrior, SAMURAI. Kyudo has the same speciality that lies in all the true martial arts. The development of the "self". |
|
Laingtjat |
|
Flail that consists of two wooden rods, one about half the length of the other, attached together by a short chain, often the shorter rod is sharpened |
|
Lames |
|
Narrow overlapping plates used to make the flexible parts of an armour |
|
Lammellar |
General |
Believed to have originated in Asia, a semi-rigid form of armour consisting of short metal plates pierced, overlapped, and laced together. Lammellar was used from Antiquity until the 20th century, but outside of Eastern Europe (and to a lesser extent, Scandinavia and Sicily) it was known, but never popular, in the West. |
|
Lance/Lancea/Lançar(spa) |
General |
A heavy spear used by cavalry, usually held under the arm ("couched") while charging. |
|
Lancea |
Roman |
Thrusting spear. It replaced the pilum as the primary weapon of the 3rd century AD on. |
|
Lantern shield |
Italian |
Shield weapon; consisted of a round buckler-type shield to which was attached a number of offensive weapons; handle projected from the inside of the forward edge of the shield which was grasped by the hand, protected by plate gauntlet; center of the shield was fitted with a projecting spike; also made with a fitting in front and the necessary hardware in back so a small lantern could be attached to it (lanterns used by some fencers in effort to dazzle opponents) |
|
Lariat |
|
1. rope lasso used to entrap and ensnare; used both hands 2. Indian parrying shield/weapon consisting of a leather or iron shield fastened over a curving pair of buckhorns which point in opposite directions of one another; often the horns are steel tipped |
|
Lasso |
General |
A lasso, rope with slip knot thrown over the head of the target. It is not only used by cowboys in the wild West but as well it's practical purpose with animals, it is an ancient weapon used by gladiators and the Huns of Attila |
|
Latten |
|
Brass, Bronze or a mixture of the two; generally a copper base metal with elements of tin or zinc plus other trace elements; often used to create armor with or to decor armor |
|
Rifles and Pistols |
In 1886 the French Army introduced the Lebel rifle. It was the world's first modern, mass-produced magazine rifle. Another innovation was the use of smokeless gunpowder. The ammunition was contained in the tubular magazine beneath the barrel. |
|
|
Rifles and Pistols |
The Lee-Enfield was first introduced in 1907 and by the outbreak of the First World War, was the British Army's main infantry weapon. It was estimated that the highly trained British Expeditionary Force that arrived in France in September 1914, were able to fire 15 rounds per minute. The Lee-Enfield could be aimed accurately over about 600 metres but could still kill someone over 1,400 metres away. |
|
|
Leonile |
|
Hardwood club |
|
Lewis Gun |
Machine-Guns |
The Lewis Gun, a light machine gun, was developed in the United States in 1911. At 12 kg it was far lighter than the Vickers Machine-Gun and in 1915 the British Army decided to purchase the gun for use on the Western Front. Another advantage of the Lewis is that six of these guns could be made in the time taken to produce one Vickers gun. Although too heavy for efficient portable use, it became the standard support weapon for the British infantry during the First World War. |
|
Lil-lil |
Australia |
Wooden fighting club usually elaborately carved |
|
Lisan |
Egyptian |
Club or throwing stick made of palm wood |
|
Liu Ye Dao |
Chinese |
Willow leaf saber |
|
Scottish |
The Lochaber Axe was a Scottish variation on the halberd design, first used around 1600. A formidable fighting weapon, the Lochaber Axe had a hook to the reverse side of the blade which was used when scaling walls. Care had to be taken not to fall on the tip of the axe once the climber reached the top of the wall. The sharp point at the top of the weapon could be used for thrusting while the long, undulating blade provided an excellent cutting and slashing edge. Additionally, the hook could be used to pull opponents off balance, off a mount, or as a disarming tool. For reference, the blade head on the weapon to the left is approximately 18 inches long. |
|
|
Lohangi |
Indian |
Mace consisting of a bamboo shaft bound with strips of iron below where the head is attached |
|
Lohar |
|
Small, steel fighting pick normally inlaid with silver and brass |
|
Longbow |
General |
The longbow is made of a single straight piece of wood such as yew. By tradition, the longbow is typically shot without a sight and without any other shooting aids. The same bow can be used by both right-handed and left-handed archers. |
|
Longsword |
European |
A sword that had the length of a greatsword, but which could be used in either one or two hands. Alternately called a "bastard sword", "hand and a half sword" or "war sword" of the 14th and 15th centuries. Between 4 - 4.5' long, and with an average weight of 3 - 4 lbs, the longsword was typically straight, double-edged, and with a simple cruciform hilt. It grew naturally out of the older, single-handed sword, as a means of combating heavier mail, and reinforced mail armour. |
|
European |
The Lucerne Hammer was a polearm weapon which proved to be extremely effective at dismounting riders and smashing through armor. Named the Lucerne Hammer because vast numbers of the weapon were found stored in the armory at Lucerne, Switzerland, the weapon was wood-hafted with a metal head. Similar to the poleax and warhammer in design, the Lucerne Hammer was fitted with a four-pronged hammer head (shown here on the right side of the weapon) rather than a simple hammerhead or blade. Not particularly useful for slashing, the Lucerne Hammer was excellent for thrusting, smashing, and ripping open armor (even against a mounted opponent) |
|
|
Rifles and Pistols |
George Luger developed a new automatic pistol. The Swiss Army was the first to officially adopt the Luger P.04 pistol. They were followed by the German Navy in in 1904 and the German Army in 1908. Produced by Deutsche Waffen und Munitions, the Luger Parabellum became the world's most widely used military handgun. The Luger fired a 7-round clip of 9mm ammunition. |
|
|
Mabobo |
|
Long, wooden club with a rounded head and squared handle |
|
Macana |
|
Club made of wood and having a rectangular section; the grip was covered with woven cane, and the head sometimes fitted with a stone blade; these clubs were sometimes thrown |
|
Mace |
General |
Rod or stick with a heavy weight at one end. |
|
Mace & chain |
European |
Flail consisting of a spiked metal ball attached to a wooden handle by means of a chain |
|
Machera |
Greek |
Bronze cutting sword with a straight single-edged blade; pommel was frequently in the form of an animal's head |
|
Machine-Guns |
Machine-Guns |
In 1884 Hiram Maxim invented the world's first automatic portable machine-gun. Maxim used the energy of each bullet's recoil force to eject the spent cartridge, insert the next and fire it. The machine-gun would therefore fire until the entire belt of bullets was used up. |
|
Mail |
General |
Type of armour formed of rings punched from a sheet of metal, or individually riveted together. A coat of mail could have over 20, 000 rings in it. Mail was flexible, and when properly belted, reasonably comfortable, but was insufficient protection against thrusts or concussive force, unless worn with heavy padding underneath. In the mid-13th century, the first additional plate defenses were added at the shin, elbows, and knees, but before the Hundred Years War (c.1338 - 1453) the knight was still essentially armoured in mail. By the end of the 14th century, mail was a primary body defence only for poor knights and common soldiers, but it continued to be used as skirts and armpit protection - areas that plates could not protect, throughout the period. Note, the term chain mail is an incorrect, Victorian, “invention.” |
|
Main-gauche |
European |
The left-handed, parrying dagger used with the rapier. |
|
Mall/Maul |
European |
A specialized, extremely heavy hammer-like mace used occasionally by English knights, particularly during the Hundred Years War. |
|
Mandehi liguje |
|
(coup stick) wooden spear |
|
Mannlicher-Carcano |
Rifles and Pistols |
In Austria Count Mannlicher developed a magazine rifle similar to the Mauser Gewehr. However, the Mannlicher rifle involved placing the clip with the cartridges into the magazine, a spring then pushing the cartridges up within the clip. When the last round was in the breech, the clip would fall through an aperture in the bottom of the magazine. In 1891 the Italian Army incorporated Mannlicher's ideas in the production of its Mannlicher-Carcano. |
|
Manople |
|
Gauntlet sword consisting of a double-edged blade with two short, curved side blades |
|
Manor |
|
1. a small holding, typically 1200-1800 acres, with its own court and probably its own hall, but not necessarily having a manor house; generally held by a knight 2. unit of rural lordship, varying greatly in size |
|
Manpau |
|
Head-hunting sword which has a tanged steel blade that is slightly curved; hilt was made of wood or deer horn, with no hand guard |
|
Manriki-gusari |
|
Metal parrying chain with weighted ends; used with one weight in each hand |
|
Mantle |
|
A loose, sleeveless cloak or cape |
|
Mantling |
|
Cloth decor suspended from a helmet, commonly illustrated in armorial artwork |
|
Mao |
Chinese |
Lance |
|
Maquahuilt |
|
Wooden club with obsidian blades set around its edges |
|
Martel de fer |
|
War hammer with a metal mallet shaped head attached to a wooden handle |
|
Masakari |
|
Battle-axe with a heavy metal head |
|
Maschinengewehr |
Machine-Guns |
The standard machine-gun used by the German Army during the early stages of the First World War was the Maschinengewehr. An almost direct copy of the Maxim Machine-Gun, the Maschinengewehr fired 7.92mm ammunition from a 250-round fabric belt. The German Army deployed over 12,000 of these machine-guns on the Western Front during August 1914. It had a practical range of 2,200 yards and an extreme range of 4,000 yards. |
|
Masse |
|
Club-like weapon most often used in tournaments |
|
Massuelle |
|
Small, all metal mace; normally had four blades on the head |
|
Mattina |
|
Wooden club with shark's teeth fitted into opposite sides of the head |
|
Mattiobarbuli |
Roman |
See Plumbatae |
|
Mattock |
General |
The mattock is a domestic/ agricultural tool used for digging and mining. It was also effective against armor when necessary -- actually, it was effective at crushing or piercing anything it hit. Mattocks were used almost exclusively by the poorer classes of Europeans when levied into military ranks during times of war. Like mauls, pitchforks, axes, and grain flails, mattocks were always readily available and much cheaper than swords. Shown here are fairly modern versions of socket headed mattocks. |
|
Maul (or mallet) |
|
A hammer-type weapon, with a heavy leaden head on a five-foot wooden shaft; usually made entirely of wood and used with two hands |
|
Mauser Gewehr |
Rifles and Pistols |
Peter Paul Mauser produced the Mauser Gewehr magazine-rifle in 1897. It was Germany's answer to the French Lebel M1888. It has been claimed that the Mauser Gewehr was the most successful bolt-action rifle ever designed. |
|
Maxim Gun |
Machine-Guns |
In 1881 the American inventor, Hiram Maxim, visited the Paris Electrical Exhibition. While he was at the exhibition he met a man who told him: "If you wanted to make a lot of money, invent something that will enable these Europeans to cut each other's throats with greater facility." |
|
Mazule |
European |
Steel mace with a pear-shaped, multi-bladed head |
|
Meat cleaver |
General |
Butcher's tool for chopping meat; has a tanged metal blade fitted into a wooden handle |
|
Meeri |
|
Wooden club with two short spikes on the end |
|
Mentok |
|
Sword with a slightly curved blade and a guardless wooden hilt |
|
Menuki |
Japanese |
Hilt ornaments of a samurai sword. |
|
Merai |
Maori |
Jade club; usually consisted of one to three metal heads attached to a wooden handle by chains |
|
Messer-Langesmesser/Parasztkés(hung) |
European |
"Long knife" or "peasant knife," this weapon was a single-edged sword, usually with a very slight curve and a long crosspiece. |
|
Metacarpal |
|
Defense for back of the hand, usually a part of a gauntlet |
|
Metsubishi |
Japanese |
Designed to blind an enemy; small, wooden box, either round or square, which was hollowed out and could be opened; either end of the flat box was fitted with a mouthpiece and a short tube; substances put into the box depending on desired outcome- ground pepper and dust could blind |
|
Mi |
Japanese |
The blade of a knife or sword. |
|
Miao Dao |
Chinese |
Sword with a long curved blade and a short hilt wielded with both hands. |
|
Mills Bomb |
Artillery |
In 1915, a grenade developed by William Mills, a Birmingham engineer, began to be used by British troops. The bomb had a central spring-loaded firing-pin and and spring-loaded lever locked by a pin. Once the Mills Bomb was in the air, the lever flew up and released the striker, which ignited a four-second time fuse, allowing the thrower to take cover before it exploded. When the grenade went off the cast-iron casing shattered producing a shower of metal fragments. |
|
Miner's axe |
European |
Axe consisting of a socketed steel head fitted onto a wooden handle; often elaborately decorated and carried as symbols of rank |
|
Misericorde |
European |
From the word “mercy.” A straight, narrow dagger, commonly seen on knightly effigies. It was so-called because it was often used to give the final “mercy” stroke to the mortally wounded. |
|
Mongwanga |
|
Iron throwing knife |
|
Morion |
European |
A late form of helmet (c. 1570 - 1650) with a strongly curved brim and high “comb” on top. Associated in popular imagination with the Spanish Conquistadores, the style actually developed after Spain’s initial conquests in the Americas. |
|
Morning star |
|
1. form of mace, consisting of a spiked metal ball attached by a chain to a short metal shaft 2. Five foot long club, its head studded with iron spikes |
|
Morning Star/Morgenstern(germ) |
European |
See Flail, also a long spiked club, popular in the 16th century and used extensively by the Habsburgs. |
|
Mugdar |
|
Thick, lead-weighted, wooden club |
|
Muragugna |
|
Wooden club with a deeply grooved head |
|
Nagan |
|
Sword with a serrated edge; hilt is padded and fitted with a spiked pommel |
|
Nagegama |
Japanese |
1. iron chain weapon that consists of a short sickle-like blade attached to a short handle which the chain is attached; thrown down upon attackers and then drawn up by the chain; two handed weapon 2. small metal throwing rod or knife 3. throwing iron resembling a small axe head |
|
Naginata |
Japan |
Long bladed and handled pole arm. |
|
Nawaz khani |
Indian |
Slightly curved sword with a disk pommel and reinforced back |
|
Nil-li |
|
Wooden club with a grooved striking head; end is pointed for use in stabbing |
|
Novacula |
|
Sickle-like tool consisting of a tanged, iron head fitted into a wooden handle |
|
Nunchaku |
|
Grain thresher, or flail, used both as a weapon of defense and offense; consists of two short wooden sticks joined together at one end by a short length of rope, leather or chain; normally a two- handed weapon |
|
Onager |
Roman |
Roman Ballista, so named after a wild ass because of the way it kicked back upon firing. It was most common in the armies in the mid 4th century AD. Since they were so large and slow to move the onagri were most suited for sieges. The length of the sling on the end of the arm could be adjusted to affect the trajectory of the stone. |
|
Oncin |
|
One-sided pick which has a socketed metal head fitted into a wooden handle and was used with both hands |
|
Ox mace |
|
Mace made of metal; head was shaped like that of an ox's and often had holes in the nostrils so that it whistled when swung |
|
Ox-tongue spear |
Swiss |
Also called the Langdebeve and Langue de Boeve (both mean tongue of the ox). The ox-tongue spear was a polearm weapon common among the Swiss and French from the 15th to the 17th centuries. It had a long double-bladed head and was named for its resemblance to the tongue of an ox. While it was named a spear, it was a polearm weapon. The ox-tongue design developed into the partisan polearm by the mid 16th century. |
|
Pacho |
South Pacific |
(tebutje) wooden club from the South Pacific with shark teeth edges |
|
Pagaya |
Brazil |
Wooden, paddle-shaped club from Brazil |
|
Pahisa |
|
Sword with a broad, double-edged blade which widens at the tip |
|
Pahu |
New Zealand |
Wooden club |
|
Pair of Plates |
European |
A body defense, with larger plates than a standard coat-of-plates, but still not a solid breastplate. |
|
Pakayun |
|
Curved sword with a forked wooden pommel; blades were generally elaborately engraved |
|
Palache |
|
17th century sword with a slightly curved blade and curved quillions; often highly decorated with gold and silver |
|
Pantaloons |
|
A bifurcated garment for a man, covering the body from the |
|
Pappenheimer |
European |
Cut-and- thrust sword developed in the 17th century; hilt consisted of a pair of oval guards pierced with holes, recurved quillions, and a knuckle guard |
|
Parang bedak |
|
Sword with a butcher knife-shaped blade and a guardless hilt |
|
Parang nabur |
|
Sword with a metal blade and bone hilt; quillions and knuckle guard are made of brass or iron; hilt is generally highly ornamental |
|
Parang pandit |
|
Sword with a straight double-edged blade and bent hilt |
|
Pareh |
|
Stone axe in which head is attached to wooden handle by plant resin |
|
Patu |
|
Short club made of basalt, bone, or jade |
|
Pauldron |
European |
Plate armour for the shoulders, devised of several, overlapped and articulated plates. |
|
Pavise |
European |
A shield for infantry with a long central spine. Usually rather large. |
|
Pedang |
Malayan |
Straight-bladed sword with a cross guard |
|
Pendjepit |
|
Metal combat pincers used to grab, twist, and tear the flesh of an enemy |
|
Periperiu |
Australia |
Long wooden club with a blunt striking end |
|
Pernat |
Russian |
Mace consisting of an iron bead attached to a wooden handle |
|
Petjut |
|
Whip/flail consists of a wooden handle with a shirt length of leather thong tipped with a ball of knotted leather or sometimes a metal sphere fastened at the end |
|
Peudeneng |
|
Thin-bladed, curved bladed sword with a L-shaped hilt |
|
Phasganon/xiphos |
Greek |
Classic Greek weapon, a straight-bladed and double-edged. cut-and-thrust sword. |
|
Pick |
General |
The pick was originally a mining weapon used to break apart rocks and earth. Military picks, generically termed fighting picks, were developed to pierce through chain mail and light armor. The pick was most popular during medieval Europe when these types of armor were extensively worn. |
|
Pike |
General |
Long spear with small iron head |
|
Pilum |
Roman |
The pila were quite unique in design. These javelins were designed to warp after impact, so they would drag down an enemy's shield, sometimes pinning two of them together. The average pilum was 1.8 meters long. It had a barbed iron shaft connected to the wooden pole in a weighted socket. A lead ball weight was added to further increase the throwing distance in the late half of the 2nd century AD. Pilum were used until the late empire |
|
Plancon a Picot |
European |
A polearm used as a thrusting weapon comprising a shaft with a spear of more than 1 metre |
|
Plaque belt |
|
Military belt formed from interlocking metal plates or metal plates riveted to a leather base |
|
Plate |
|
A general term for iron defenses fashioned from sheet iron or steel. "Plate"defenses were during the Middle Ages first introduced during the late 13th century, first as reinforcing for mail defenses and later as defenses on their own. |
|
Plombee |
European |
Lead-weighted mace with a wooden handle |
|
Plumbatae |
Roman |
Hand-thrown lead weighted darts carried by the infantry. They were rather expensive to produce, but they allowed the infantry to effectively double as missile troops |
|
Po Dao |
Chinese |
A broad sword with a long blade and a short hilt wielded with both hands |
|
Podang |
|
Sword with a curved blade and a steel hilt with cross guards |
|
General |
The general term for a group of pole-mounted weapons usually featuring a cutting or slashing weapon on one end. The halberd, guisarm, bill, bec-de-corbin, and poleaxe are all specific kinds of polearms. |
|
|
Poleyn |
European |
Plate armour for the knee. |
|
Pommel |
General |
Weight on the handle of a sword, used to balance the weapon and for striking ("Pummelling").. Pommels came in a variety of shapes: disks, balls, brazil-nuts, crescents, a sort of mushroom cap, etc., and changed in popularity as much with changes in fashion sense as martial usage |
|
Poni |
|
Wooden club usually fitted with a woven cord grip |
|
Pourpoint |
European |
Originally a coat armour, substituting in this function the cotte d'armes for a while in the fourteenth century. It was tight, fitting, cut without sleeves and was shorter than the hauberk worn under it. |
|
Pouwhenua |
|
Wooden staff flattened on one end and pointed on the other |
|
Pugio |
Roman |
The legionaries carried a dagger starting in the 2nd or 1st centuries BC. During the rein of Augustus the gladius was carried on one belt and the pugio hung on another. By the 2nd century AD daggers were no longer issued |
|
Puhah bemoh |
|
Two-handed sword with a long steel blade and two hand guards |
|
Puiouar |
Indian |
Heavily curved sword with a metal hilt |
|
Purijimala |
Australian |
Wooden club |
|
Qiang |
Chinese |
Spear |
|
Qiao |
Chinese |
Scabbard |
|
Persian |
Straight-bladed sword, often inlaid with gold; hilt is of horn with no guard |
|
|
Quadrelle |
|
Small mace with four blades |
|
Quarterstaff |
General |
The quarterstaff is the simplest form of the polearm weapon in medieval Europe. It was simply a long wooded pole. Not particularly effective in a fight against an opponent in armor or wielding anything other than a wooden weapon, the quarterstaff was an excellent weapon for travelers as it doubled both as a walking staff and as a deterrent against brigands. The quarterstaff was used more in fencing and brawling than melee combat, as demonstrated by the two sissies above. |
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Quillons |
European |
A Renaissance term for the cross-guard. |
|
Quirriang-an-wun |
|
Throwing club similar to a boomerang |
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Quoit |
Indian |
Steel mace with a bead head of a heavy quoit and fitted with a hand guard |
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Rang-kwan |
|
Wooden club used primarily by women; long and is pointed at both ends |
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Rante |
|
Whipping chain designed to entangle an opponent's weapon or ensnare the legs or arms; usually a two-handed weapon |
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Rante ber gangedug |
|
Whipping chain with a T-shaped handle on one end and a sharpened metal rod on the other; parrying weapon designed to entangle an opponent's weapon or ensnare legs or arms |
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Rapier |
European |
A long, double-edged, slender bladed, single-handed sword, designed to emphasize the thrust. Rapiers first appeared in the mid-16th century, and were used through the next century. The rapier may be the first, purely civilian sword, devised. The exact origins of the rapier are still debated between Italy or Spain, but in either case, its popularity grew with the new, deadly “fad” of the duel (one no doubt directly influencing the other) and it began the process towards an exclusively thrust-oriented form of swordplay, which would see its final martial evolution in the smallsword of the Enlightenment. |
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Rebated |
General |
A sword that has had its point and edge blunted for training or tournament. |
|
General |
Unlike the longbow, the ends of an unstrung recurve bow are curved away from the archer. This allows the strung bow to be more powerful and shorter than the longbow - ideal for the horsemen who invented it! Unlike the longbow, a one-piece recurve is made of several thin laminations fixed together in the recurved shape rather than one piece of straight wood. |
|
|
Reiterpallasch |
Danish |
cavalry sword with a straight blade and guarded hilt |
|
Rerebrace |
European |
Armour for the upper arm. |
|
Rhomphaia |
Thracian |
A blade attached to a long handled pole similar to the Falx |
|
Ricasso |
European |
The unsharpened portion of the sword blade nearest the hilt. |
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Riveting |
General |
The process of joining two pieces of metal with a rivet (a headed pin) by passing the shank through a hole in each piece and then beating down the plain end so as to make a second head as a fastener. The process was used in jewellery instead of soldering, when it was not practicable to apply heat or when one part was to be left flexible for swivelling. The rivets are of the same metal as the piece |
|
Rondel dagger |
European |
A military dagger with he pommel and hand-guard formed of roundels. The dagger was often 18” long or more, with a single-edged, or even triangular, blade. |
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Roundel |
|
Round metal attachment at the base of a polearm to keep the hands from sliding down the shaft and onto the blade |
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Rucksack |
|
A kind of knapsack strapped over the shoulders |
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Rungu |
|
Club generally made of one piece of wood; handle was generally sharpened so it could be used as a stabbing weapon as well as a club |
|
Sa tjat koen |
Malayan |
Wooden three-sectioned flail; used with both hands |
|
Sabar |
Indian |
Steel pick |
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Sabaton |
European |
Articulated, steel foot armour. |
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Sabia/Szablya(hung)/Säbel(germ) |
European |
Sabre |
|
Saboton (also called solleret) |
|
1. an armored, pointed shoe 2. armor for the foot usually consisting of plates ending in a toecap 3. armor for the foot made of plate, mail, or other metal |
|
Sai |
Japanese |
parrying baton; an iron bar with a leather covered grip and two small side hooks mounted parallel to the bar; some sai had blades; often used in pairs |
|
Saintie |
Indian |
Steel parrying weapon; metal spear with a hand guard mounted in the center; some had a small thrusting dagger concealed in the shaft |
|
Salade/Sallet |
European |
A helmet of the 15th and 16th centuries, often with a small, hinged visor, and a long, articulated tail, to protect the back of the neck. Variants existed for both footsoldiers and men-at-arms. |
|
Sallet |
|
A light, rounded helmet with projecting neckguard and, often, a visor, worn in the 15th century |
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Sansetsukon |
China |
A Chinese weapon consisting of three rods connected by chain or rope |
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Sapakana |
|
Hardwood club |
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Sapola |
Indian |
Sword with a curved blade and a forked point; pommel is decorated with the figure of a griffin |
|
Assyrian |
The sappara was an ancient Assyrian (middle east) weapon forged most often of bronze attached to a wooden hilt. The sappara closely followed the Egyptian khopesh in both form and function, although the sappara was edged only on the convex edge of the blade. |
|
|
Sarissa |
Greek |
Pike; Macedonian heavy thrusting spear used by both mounted troops and infantry. |
|
Sassanid |
|
Straight single edged sword; unguarded straight hilt made of horn |
|
Sauscitwerter |
European |
Hunting weapon normally used by the nobility; consisted of a hand-and-a-half hilt; could be used with one or two hands if necessary |
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Savage |
|
Axe that generally carried as a symbol of rank |
|
Sax/Saex |
Saxon |
A long, heavy single-edged knife favored by the Nordic peoples, with a recognizable modern descendant in the Bowie knife. The Saxon race is said to have taken its name from this weapon, which originally meant stone. Some saxes could be as much as three feet long, and hilted like swords. |
|
Saya |
Japanese |
The scabbard of a samurai sword. |
|
Scabbard |
General |
A sheath for a sword or dagger. Most scabbards were made of thin wood, lined with felt of sheepskin, and covered in leather. |
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Scale armour |
|
Small rectangular plates of metal, attached to a leather or linen coat, lighter and more flexible than mail |
|
Scbnepfer |
Swiss |
Slightly curved sword with a broad hand guard and a knuckle guard |
|
Schestopjor |
|
Mace with a many-bladed metal head |
|
European |
A form of agile Renaissance cut & thrust sword with a decorative cage-hilt and distinctive "cat-head" pommel. So named for the Schiavoni or Venetian Doge’s Slavonic mercenaries and guards of the 1500’s who favored the weapon. They are usually single edged back-swords but may also be wide or narrow double edged blades. Some have ricasso for a fingering grip while others have thumb-rings. The Schiavona is often considered the antecedent to other cage hilt swords such as the Scottish basket-hilted "broadsword". |
|
|
Scimeter |
|
Broad-bladed curved sword with a small cross guard |
|
Scimitar |
Middle East |
Curved sword. Originally from Syria. Characterized by a broad, curved blade ending in a uniquely upturned point |
|
Scorpio |
Roman |
Roman Ballista. It threw a bolt 27 inches long (67cm). As it would have been impossible to find feathers large enough to provide stability to these over-sized arrows, so the flights were made of leather or wood. The iron points were pyramid shaped. The hand cranks at the rear were used to winch the arrow, or bolt, back to the firing position |
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Scutum |
Roman |
Rectangular Roman shield |
|
Sego |
|
Metal parrying weapon; used to strike against the arms and head of the enemy |
|
Senangkas bedok |
Malayan |
Slightly curved sword with wide grooves in the blade |
|
Seppa |
Japanese |
The washers above and below the tsuba of a samurai sword. |
|
Shakujo yari |
|
Wooden staff with a removable and hidden straight, double-edged steel blades; requires both hands to use |
|
Persian |
The shamshir was originally a Persian sword but variations of it drifted east into India and west into Turkey as well. The shamshir was a curved, thick bladed, single edged weapon with a very distinctive curved-back hilt. Used primarily for slashing afoot and mounted, it could also be thrust well. Some versions of the shamshir had flamboyant blade styles similar to the flamberge |
|
|
Shashpar |
Indian |
Steel mace with six blades and fitted with a hand guard |
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Shashqa |
|
Consists of a slightly curved single-edged blade fitted into an unguarded hilt |
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Sheaf arrow |
|
Heavy armour piercing arrow used by longbowmen at close range |
|
Shi Ba Ban Bing Qi |
Chinese |
18 kinds of weapons including Dao, Qiang, Jian, Ji, Gun, Bang, Shuo, Tang, Fu, Yue, Chan, Pa, Bian, Jian, Chui, Cha, Ge, Mao |
|
Shi Ba Ban Wu Yi |
Chinese |
Skill in wielding the 18 kinds of weapons |
|
Shield |
General |
A defensive devise that came in a variety of shapes and sizes, made of leather-covered wood or metal, and hung from the arm by a series of straps, or gripped by a handle. |
|
Shinai |
Japan |
Bamboo practice weapon , used in Kendo training to simulate the Katana |
|
Shinobi-zue |
|
Wooden staff with a concealed blade fitted on the end; two-handed weapon |
|
Shoka |
African |
Battle-axe; triangular metal bead is fitted into a hardwood handle by means of a short narrow tang |
|
Short Sword |
General |
Short sword is a term descriptive of the size of sword rather than a particular type of sword itself. The term short sword didn’t become commonly popular until the early middle ages when the standard sword length grew. A short sword is generally any bladed weapon longer than a dagger but shorter than a longsword. For example, the Roman gladius and Greek kopis are referred to as short swords but both have particular names of their own. Throughout history, short swords have been popular as both primary weapons and back-up weapons. Warriors not quite strong enough to wield a large sword carried them; the lighter weight of the weapon made it very effective in a close quarters melee. Spearmen and archers often carried short swords as a secondary weapon, should they have to close with and fight their opponents. |
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Shotel |
|
Sword with a double-edged blade which had a diamond-shaped cross section; the extreme curvature of these swords made them nearly useless except for cuffing attacks |
|
Shou Dao |
Chinese |
Hand sword |
|
Shuang Dao |
Chinese |
Double or paired swords |
|
Shuang Jian |
Chinese |
Double or paired double-edged swords |
|
Shuko |
|
Iron palm guards with spikes on the palms for use with climbing; also used to parry sword strikes |
|
Shuo |
Chinese |
Extra long spear |
|
Shuriken |
|
Metal knife or star |
|
Siangkam |
|
Long metal arrowhead attached to wooden handles; used in pairs for thrusting and slashing |
|
Sickle |
|
Mace made of steel; striking head is a heavy curved blade and thus the weapon resembles the various ancient sickle swords |
|
Sights |
European |
The ‘eye slot’ in a helmet’s visor. Also called occularium. |
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Silepe |
|
Axe consisting of a wide blade which is connected to the wooden handle by a flat tang; wooden handle is sometimes reinforced by wire coils |
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Singa |
|
Steel boomerang |
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Sirohi |
|
Straight-bladed sword with a padded hilt, slightly curved examples exist also; often these weapons were highly decorated |
|
Siwalapa |
|
Wooden club with a small cylindrical handle and a square striking head |
|
Skeggox |
Viking |
"bearded axe" had a blade drawn down like a beard. They are dated early as the 8th century, and it is presumed that they were first used, like many early weapons, as farm implements and found their way into battle. |
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Skull |
|
Crown of the helmet; the central defense for the upper portion of the head |
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Slung shot |
|
(sap, or blackjack) club weapon consists of a lead weight with a flexible leather cover handle woven over it |
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Small-Sword |
European |
Sometimes known as a "court-sword", a "walking-sword", or "town-sword", small-swords developed in the late Renaissance as a personal dueling tool and weapon of self-defense. Most popular in the 1700's it is sometimes confused with the rapier. It consisted almost exclusively of a sharp pointed metal rod with a much smaller guard and finger-rings. Its blade was typically a hollow triangular shape and was much thicker at the hilt. Most had no edge at all, and were merely rigid, pointed, metal rods. They were popular with the upper classes especially as decorative fashion accessories, worn like jewelry. In a skilled hand the small sword was an effective and deadly instrument. Until the early 1800s it continued to be used even against older rapiers and even some cutting swords. It is the small-sword rather than the rapier which leads to the epee and foil of modern sport fencing. |
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Sodang |
Malay |
Broad-bladed sword without a hand guard |
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Sopok |
|
1. wooden blowpipe with an iron spearhead attached to the end; used with two hands 2. shield weapon; small metal shield protecting the forearm to which was fitted a blade or spike |
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Sosunpattah |
|
Sword with a straight blade and a spiked pommel; often highly decorated with engravings |
|
Spada |
Italian |
Italian for sword. |
|
Spadroon |
European |
Cut-and-thrust sword with a light, flexible blade; double-edged near the point |
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Sparte |
|
Battle-axe consists of a broad socketed head fitted onto a wooden handle |
|
Roman |
The Roman long (36”), cavalry sword. One of the origins of the “knightly” sword, and the Latin origin for spada, espada and espee. It was the sword used by the cavalry. The blade was much longer than the gladius and was used for slashing. The large numbers of barbarians serving in the legions used the spatha in the late empire. It was ideal because the spatha did not require the same skill and training needed to properly wield a gladius |
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Spaulder |
|
14th and 15th century defense for the shoulder, featuring a small dished defense for the shoulder point and a number of lames extending down the arm |
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Spear |
General |
Spears are basically any weapon with a wooden shaft and pointed tip used exclusively for thrusting and throwing; the spear is more a category than a particular weapon design. Simple wooden spears have been around since the beginning of human history. Spear points have been made of every conceivable material which can be edged or pointed: wood, stone, bone, animal spines, and metal. Throwing spears were generally very long while thrusting spears tended to be shorter. The basic spear, when used for thrusting, was the ancestor of all weapons in the polearm group (the idea being to fight your enemy at arm’s length or greater). |
|
European |
Also referred to as the corseca, corsèsque, korseke, runka, rawcon, ranseur, and chauve souris (each of these weapons were very minor variations on the spetum design). The spetum is a polearm weapon similar to the ox-tongue spear, bill, and partisan. It consisted of a broad blade sharpened on two sides with smaller blades protruding from the left and right of the center blade. The weapon could be thrust or used for slashing. Many varieties of this weapon existed across Europe, hence the similar shape but different names for them all. |
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Spine sword |
Indian |
Sword with a comb-like spring blade |
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Sporran |
Scottish |
Large purse or pouch usually made of leather or animal fur, attached to waist in front of the kilt when in full dress |
|
Springfield Rifle |
Rifles and Pistols |
The first Springfield musket, the M1795, was produced for the United States military in 1795. Following the Spanish-American War in 1898, Erskine Allin, the Superintendent of the Springfield Arsenal, developed the M1903. The bolt-action magazine rifle, an adaptation of the Mauser Gewehr, was used by the United States Army during the First World War. The M1903 rifle remained the US standard rifle until 1936. However, because of production problems with the M1A1, it was also used during the Second World War. Snipers also preferred using the rifle all the way through the Korean War. |
|
Stechtarsche |
German |
Small ribbed shield laced to the left shoulder; sometimes these shields were made of cuirboille, painted, or gold leafed |
|
Stiletto |
European |
The stiletto was a European thrusting dagger first developed in Italy. The entire weapon was usually forged of a single piece of steel. The blade was long, narrow, and triangular or rectangular sectioned without a cutting edge. Adept at inflicting deep puncture wounds and even piercing light armor, the stiletto was a popular secondary weapon for soldiers and citizens alike. The stiletto was particularly popular among assassins because of its narrow width and ease of concealment |
|
Studded and Splinted Armour |
European |
A term sometimes given to the transitional armour of the 14th century, in which a variety of rigid materials was riveted in strips or plates to the inside of heavy fabric or leather coverings. |
|
Suan-tou-fung |
Chinese |
Metal mace with globular head |
|
Sugarloaf |
|
A transition helmet between the heaulm and the bascinet, where the skull of the helmet was pointed like a bascinet and the sides enclosed like a heaulm. |
|
Sultani |
Indian |
Slightly curved sword with a hand guard |
|
Surai |
|
Sword with a curved tip and spiked pommel |
|
Surcoat |
European |
A long, tunic-like, cloth garment worn over the armour, in a variety of forms, from the 1170s to the 1420s. The early surcoat was almost heel length, and progressively became shorter and tighter-fitting. Surcoats served a variety of purposes. Firstly they kept a certain amount of rain and dirt off of the armour. Secondly, they provided a screen to keep the metal armour from the sun’s heat. Third, they became a background for the display of the wearer’s coat of arms. |
|
Taavish |
|
Stone axe with the wooden handle carved at the end to represent a man's head; stone blade is fitted into the handle and represents the tongue |
|
Tabard |
European |
A simple garment, similar to a surcoat, slit down the sides, with the front and back held together by ties which could be drawn tight or left loose. Tabards were used in tournaments to display the knights’ heraldry in the late 15th century, and survive today as the elaborate garments worn by officers of the English College of Heralds on ceremonial occasions. |
|
Tabar-i-zin |
|
Large two handed axe; socketed metal head fitted onto a wooden shaft |
|
Taber |
|
Steel battle-axe |
|
Tachi |
Japanese |
Japanese long sword worn slung from a sword belt. Like the katana, the tachi had a single-edged curved blade |
|
Tailbon |
|
Sword with a tanged blade fitted into a carved wooden handle with a cane grip |
|
Takieh |
|
Short sword with a slightly curved blade and a broad pommel which could be used as a crutch; often these weapons were highly decorated |
|
Takouba |
|
Straight, double-edged sword with no guard; its hilt is fitted with a crosspiece below the pommel |
|
India |
Also called the tulwar, the talwar was a curved steel sword from India very similar in design and function to the scimitar and shamshir. It was an excellent slashing weapon with a sharp tip that could also be used for thrusting when necessary. Many remaining talwars have intricately carved blades which depict family histories, great battles, and the like |
|
|
Tam |
Scottish |
(tam-o'shanter, tammy) woolen cap |
|
Tambara |
|
Wooden club with two to four prongs at the end |
|
Tang |
Chinese |
Double-daggered axe |
|
Tan-kiev |
|
Metal, sword-like parrying weapon; square-sectioned metal bar with a swordlike hilt |
|
Tanto |
Japanese |
A Japanese dagger with a blade eight to sixteen inches long and carried by the samurai in addition to the katana |
|
Taper |
European |
Axe; socketed metal bead fitted onto a wooden handle |
|
Targe |
European |
A targe ("targa" or Italian "rondella") was a small wooden shield with a leather cover and leather or metal trim. Some later Renaissance versions were made entirely of steel. Targets were worn on the arm as with typical shields. They were also usually flat rather than convex. The "targe" actually comes from small "targets" placed on archery practice dummies. |
|
Target |
European |
A round shield, mounted on the arm, used throughout history. Most targets were large (30 - 36”) and made of wood, but in the Renaissance, a smaller (24” diameter), steel version became popular. |
|
Tasak(pol.)/Tesak(cz.)/Tisak(rus)/Dussack(germ) |
European |
Similar to the Messer, a weapon that stood somewhere between a long knife (given the standards of the day) and a short sword, almost always single-edged and slightly curved. |
|
Tashi |
|
Curved sword which is essentially the same the katana, differences between the two are the fittings and the way they are worn - tashi is hung from the belt with the edge downward and the katana is thrust into the belt with the edge upward |
|
Tasset (taces) |
|
15th century defense for the hips that attached to the fauld; usually a plate of iron or steel, often featuring one or more fluted ribs and a thick rolled edge for strength |
|
Tassets |
European |
Overlapping plates that cover the juncture of hip and thigh in a full suit of plate armour. |
|
Tebutje |
|
Could be used as a sword or a club; made of light wood with shark teeth attached onto the edges of the club |
|
Tebutje-pacho |
|
Heavy wooden club usually with obsidian or shark teeth edge for slashing; two-handed weapon |
|
Tetsubishi |
Japanese |
A four-pointed caltrop used by the ninja to slow down a pursuer. No matter which way a tetsubishi landed one sharp point always protruded upward |
|
Tetsubo |
Japanese |
"Iron staff." A weapon used by the samurai from either a horse-mounted or ground position |
|
Tewha-tewha |
|
Wooden club with a long, tapering shaft and a quarter-circle shaped bead at one end; feathers were hung from the head to flick them in the face of an enemy in effort to confuse him |
|
Thin axe |
European |
Piercing axe |
|
Thinin |
|
Broad-bladed sword with an unguarded hilt; a European thrusting sword with a diamond-sectioned blade |
|
Three sectional staff |
China |
A Chinese weapon consisting of three rods connected by chain or rope. |
|
Thrusting axe |
European |
Axe with head that has a long point extending up for use in thrusting attacks |
|
Tie Ji Li |
Chinese |
Caltrop |
|
Tiger Claw |
India |
The tiger claw is one of the most fierce hand weapons ever created for use against an un-armored opponent. From India, its proper name is the bagh nakh (references to it as the wagh nakh also exist). The bagh nakh consists of a metal bar with three to five sharp, curved blades extending from the base of the bar. The pinkie and forefingers slip through the rings, allowing the wielder to grasp the bar firmly in the palm. |
|
Tiglun |
|
Club-like dagger made of ivory; might have been used by Eskimos |
|
Tindil |
|
Wooden club |
|
Tjabang |
|
Metal parrying weapon similar to the Sai |
|
Toki Kakauroa |
Maori |
Fighting axe; usually with elaborately carved bone or wood handle |
|
Tomahawk |
North American Indian |
Combat axe and pipe; usually has a narrow iron blade fitted with a pipe bowl opposite the blade, wooden handle is hollow and forms the pipe stem |
|
Tonfa |
|
Wooden rice husking tool; as combat weapon it could block attacks when rested along the forearm; also used to jab or club |
|
Tongia |
|
Axe with socketed iron head and a semicircular blade attached to a wooden handle; sometimes used as a missile |
|
Toporok axe |
Russian |
Battle-axe |
|
Torpedo |
Artillery |
Self-propelled underwater missile launched from a tube located on the deck or inside the hull of a warship. The man who invented the first torpedo was Captain David Bushnell, who tried it out in New York Harbour in 1776. Bushell named it after the torpedo fish, a ray with an electric apparatus for killing its prey. Bushnell's torpedo comprised an explosive charge fixed to an enemy hull and was set-off by a clockwork fuse. These early torpedoes were stationary devices which exploded against vessels and were later classified as mines. |
|
Torse |
|
A colorful cloth worn around the crown of the helmet, from which the mantling was attached (used from the 13th century through the 15th, torses and mantling helped to identify knights in war and provided a colorful expressive tool for tournaments and pageants of the 15th century) |
|
General |
The trebuchet was a counterpoise siege engine that derive from Roman and Greek prototypes. The Arabs probably adopted it by the end of the 17th century. In 1147 these weapons seem to have been used by the crusaders at the siege of Lisbon. This early form was the traction trebuchet, also sometimes confusingly styled as the "mangonel." Basically the machine consisted of a long beam (or set of beams bound together) pivoted between a pair of uprights. Ropes were attached to one end of the beam and sling to the other. A stone was placed in the sling and a group of men hauled on the ropes and so pivoted up the longer end of the beam. At critical moments the sling opened and released its missile. |
|
|
Trident |
General |
Tridents were polearm weapons based on the agricultural tool, the pitchfork. Employed exclusively for thrusting, the trident provided a broader surface area upon which to skewer an opponent than did a spear. Variations of the trident design existed in almost all cultures where polearms were used in war. The trident was most famous for its use in the Roman gladitorial arenas. |
|
Trombash |
|
Wooden throwing stick with an angled end |
|
Truncheon |
|
1. a short, thick staff, similar to a policeman's baton 2. European club made of wood |
|
Tschekan |
Russian |
War hammer with a steel head |
|
Tsuba |
Japanese |
The guard of a samurai sword. |
|
Tsuka |
Japanese |
Handle of a samurai sword. |
|
Tuagh-gatha |
Scottish |
Battle-axe |
|
Tungi |
|
Fighting axe with socketed steel head attached to a short wooden handle |
|
Tunic |
|
A loose, gownlike garment worn by men and women in ancient Greece and Rome 2. a blouselike garment extending to the hips or lower, usually gathered at the waist, often with a belt |
|
Two-handed sword |
General |
A specialized type of great sword that became popular in the 16th century. The size and weight of the weapon, made it unsuited for close formation fighting, and its use was reserved for banner defense, guarding breeches in siege warfare, and forming skirmish lines. The grip was very long in proportion to the blade, and the overall sword could be 5 1/2’ - 6’ long. |
|
Uchi-ne |
|
1. short throwing dart made of wood with a metal head 2. wooden throwing club |
|
Udlimau |
|
Fighting adze of hardwood, had a stone point fixed with resin on the head |
|
Uramanta |
|
Throwing stick made of wood |
|
Vambrace |
European |
Armour guarding the forearm. |
|
Veecharoval |
Indian |
Scythe-type weapon consisting of a curved, metal blade attached to a wooden handle |
|
Venmuroo |
|
Battle-axe consisting of a tanged, steel head fitted into an ebony wood shaft which is reinforced with metal bands; often ornamented with silver and brass |
|
Ventail |
|
Mail or plate skirts attached to bascinets to protect the throat (mostly used during the the 14th and 15th century) |
|
Verdun |
European |
Long thrusting sword with a diamond or square-sectioned blade used in the 16th century |
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Veruta |
Roman |
Throwing javelin of the late empire. |
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vervelles |
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Bronze, brass, or latten staples that attached to a bascinet to enable the leather cuff of an aventail to be secured to the helmet |
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Machine-Guns |
Produced by the Vickers Company, it was a modified version of the Maxim Machine-Gun. The Vickers Gun used a 250 round fabric-belt magazine and had the reputation as a highly reliable weapon. |
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Viretoni |
European |
Large crossbow bolt. Dalmatia, 14th century. |
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Vouge, Voulge |
European |
See Glaive. |
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voulge |
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1. a tool used for trimming trees 2. polearm weapon characterized by a broad axe-like blade with a single spike protrusion at the top, often attached to a wooden pole |
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Waddy |
Australian |
Wooden club |
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Wahaika |
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Club made of wood or bone; often elaborately carved |
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Wairbi |
Australian |
Womens' fighting club made of wood |
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Wakerti |
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Wooden paddle-shaped club |
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Wakizashi |
Japanese |
"Short sword." The shorter of the samurai's two swords, with a blade of sixteen to twenty-three inches long. |
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Wams |
German |
See Pourpoint |
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Wan Dao |
Chinese |
Curved single-edged sword |
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War Axe |
General |
The term waraxe is not a particular weapon but rather descriptive of an axe designed specifically for use in combat. Waraxes were generally all metal construction and occasionally double-headed. Their axe heads were often longer and broader than a common woodsman’s axe was |
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War Hammer |
General |
While hammer-like weapons had been in use for centuries throughout the world, the medieval European war hammer was a very specific adaptation of the blunt, crushing war hammer design we generally associate with the Norse deity Thor. The medieval war hammer was one of the few weapons with an edge that could both tear open armor plate as well as inflict devastating concussion blows. The war hammer usually had a beak-like blade opposite a faceted hammer, making it a combination of a mace and pick. The weight of the metal head concentrated on the sharp point of the beak after a full swing easily pierced both chain and plate mail. A spear-like tip on some versions allowed for thrusting as well as swinging. While some war hammers were of all metal construction, most were socketed metal heads attached to wooden hafts; metal reinforcement bars (termed langets or cheeks) along the side of the wood haft prevented the hammer head from breaking off during combat |
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War Sword |
General |
See Longsword |
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Waster |
European |
A wooden practice sword. Also called a bevin, bavin or cudgel. |
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Watilikri |
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Wooden throwing stick |
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Webley Revolver |
Rifles and Pistols |
Originally designed in 1887, but improved during the early stages of the war, the Webley was a strong heavy-calibre weapon. It has been estimated that over 300,000 Webley revolvers were distributed to British officers during the war |
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Weerba |
Australian |
Hardwood club from Australia |
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Wfrka |
Australian |
Two-pronged wooden club from Australia |
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Whip |
General |
The whip has been a versatile tool and weapon in cultures worldwide since the beginning of time. It has been used as an implement for punishment, for controlling animals, for war, and, in recent years in the less talked about corners of society, as an accessory for intimacy (we’ll let that use go without further discussion -- this is a family show). War whips were usually very sturdy and flail-like. Most involved metal or stone tips attached via a chain or linking metal bars to a metal or wood handle. The variety of whip common in Elanthia seems to be flexible from the way it can be cracked, thus we selected the bullwhip for display here. The bullwhip, in the hands of an expert, can tear the flesh off bodies, pull objects out of a target’s hand, and in rare cases break bones. |
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Woodsman's axe |
General |
Common tool generally used with two hands; consists of a socketed metal head fitted onto a wooden handle |
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Xiphos |
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Bronze sword with a tanged metal blade fitted into a plain wooden hilt |
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Yan Ling Dao |
Chinese |
A waist saber with feathery pattern on the blade |
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Yan Yue Dao |
Chinese |
Crescent-shaped sword with a long handle |
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Yao Dao |
Chinese |
Waist saber |
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A long knife or short saber that lacks a guard for the hand at the juncture of blade and hilt; usually has a double curve to the edge and a nearly straight back |
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Yeamberren |
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Wooden club with a large conical head |
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Yue |
Chinese |
A big battle-axe |
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zagbnal |
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Steel pick or beaked axe from India; often engraved and inlaid with gold |
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Zaghnal |
India |
A steel fighting pick from India. |
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Zhe Dao |
Chinese |
Tibetan knife |
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Zhi Dao |
Chinese |
Straight single-edged sword |
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Zweihander |
German |
The two-handed sword of medieval Europe had a number of names, most fairly self-explanatory. Great in size and weight (some weighed as much as 15-20 pounds), they required two hands to use (zweihander is German for two handed). Most simple two-handed swords were characterized by long straight blades, straight quillons, and a long hilt sufficient for grasping with two hands. Some two-handed swords such as the claymore and flamberge were unique enough to have their own names. Despite their straight blades, two-handed swords were designed for swinging, rather than just thrusting. It was one of the few swords designed to and capable of crushing through heavy armor. A great deal of strength and space were needed to use a two-handed sword well. |
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Acknowledgements and thanks to all sources including those listed here