[Gonzalo G]

I must clear one point. I was not talking about this specific sword. My intention is to question the general statement that the flammard swords existing on the whole wrold, were intended just like ceremonial, ritualistic or religious symbols. I don´t belive respectable swordsmiths from Spain would make this kind of blades in their time, and stamped them, as such kind of symbols, risking to die burnt on the stake or suffering very severe punishments. Our actual knowledge about the uses of flammard or serrated blades is very poor. Many people has questioned even how such indopersian hilts, with big discs on the pommels, could had been used, as those discs tend to hurt the wrist. Anybody who have a tulwar with this kind hilt knows this, just swinging it on the air.

Our actual knowledge about the old martial arts is also very limited, except for the treatises found about some european swordfighting techniques. The actual martial artists have not experience in real combat fighting with many old swords. Once, an iranian expert told me that the tulwar was handled with the wrist locked to the forearm, and this technique could explain a safe use of the pommel disc. It could be true, or not, but it remains the fact that the sword was actually used with some special technique. This is specially true with the not so known martial arts form the orient. The practitioners of swrodplay with the use of the historic rapier, knows that may modern sword techniques used on the sportive martial arts, could be not used with the real old swords, because of the weight they have.

I don´t believe, also, that those flammard swords were a very functional design. As many other ephimeral designs historically used in the whole world. They correspond to a periods, beliefs, aesthetics and fashions that require a more deep field investigation.

The absence of an actual edge in a sword, does not make proof it was not intended to fight, as many weapons, including some rapiers, were intended to be used only to parry and stab, and never to chop, slice or cut. All depends od their intended use. An ondulated blade seem very efective to parry, but dissconcerting in the act of stabbing if not familiar with this kind of blade. Not a problem it can´t be solved by training. A slender blade thickest and widest at the base and narrowing towars the pont, is classical on the rapiers. In other words, I have no doubts that certain ceremonial or ritualistic uses required an ondulated sword, but this fact does not authorizes the general statement that this design was intended only to this purpose in every culture, IMHO. A flashy, impresive and not very practical design, I agree. I am sure we can find many other examples of fighting weapons with this characteristics.
Regards

Gonzalo