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Originally Posted by ulfberth
with the permission of Casey, here is a picture of the last dagger in the condition how it was found before cleaning.
kind regards
Ulfberth
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Salaams ulfberth, I was quite surprised to learn that Florentine Technique
is the art of wielding two weapons at once, one in each hand. It is a style developed by the Italians in the city of Florence, hence the name. Some people prefer to call this method "Two-Swords" or even simply "Two-Weapons".
Florentine exists in multiple ways with multiple weapons. The two most common methods are the Sword and Dagger method and the Dual-Sword method. I also note that the dagger was also worn on its own on occasions when it was not practical to wear a rapier...
Sword and Dagger is the original style of Florentine fighting. Your dominant hand holds a quick sword and your off hand holds a large specially designed dagger.
These large daggers would often have hidden blade trappers making them much more effective than they seemed. The French called this dagger a main gauche, which literally means "left hand". This method is very difficult to master, but amazingly powerful.
Below...The sketch is described more or less as getting the technique wrong! The photo is of a modern tournament showing a block and the close up of the dagger is a clear picture of the blade entrapment device ...
I note that: Though it required more coordination that most other fighting styles, particularly with the off-hand, when practiced well, Florentine could be a devastating technique. It combined a versatile defense with furious offense, but like all styles of fighting without a shield, it was particularly vulnerable to archery. For this reason, some Florentine fighters chose to wear a buckler or a back shield.
On a large field, Florentine fighters typically served as skirmishers and flankers, as they could have been quickly shot down by archers when in a line.
Does anyone have any artwork showing the Sail guard in action ?