Ethnographic Arms & Armour - View Single Post

ariel · 29th October 2006, 03:08 PM

Carlo,
All of us are armchair specialists, yourself included (no offence). The age of chivalry is gone, swords are obsolete as weapons and nobody's life depends on the quality of his Katana, Shamshir or Shashka. Some of us still want to feel a small fraction of the thrill of sword wielding and cut empty Coke bottles, styrofoam noodles or green bamboo stalks in what they think is a "keeping of tradition". My kids, when they were little, fought dandelions in the backyard with plastic swords ( I did the same when I was their age

), and I see very little difference in the motivation and the enthusiasm of a 5 year-old with a sword from Toy-R-US in a backyard and a 40 year-old with a custom-made katana in a Dojo. Neither should be embarrassed in the least.
It's just a game, no more.

I would view practical tests that you suggest using an Assadollah's Shamshir or Masamune's Katana as acts of vandalism, akin to testing the durability of Rafael's paints by pouring acid on the canvas. This thread was about examining legends of wootz swords possessing almost magical qualities. We can use contemporary knowledge of metallurgy and what little actual info we have. The old accounts of incredible cutting feats seem to be exaggerated ( as Lee wisely mentioned, they are seen in all cultures, in all times, and are best suited to campfire chats).
We shall never (hopefully!) be so dumb as to plan any practical tests. The money you mentioned is only a minor factor: it is the destruction of the object of art that would hopefully stop us from committing the folly.

Until then, let kids behead dandelions, grown men pretend being samurai or vikings, metalworkers make better and better blades , with Kirk, without Kirk, this hardness, that resilience to cold temperatures, and then all of us can sit in our comfy armchairs with a glass of Grappa or beer and swap stories.

29th October 2006, 03:08 PM	#136
ariel Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Ann Arbor, MI Posts: 5,503	Carlo, All of us are armchair specialists, yourself included (no offence). The age of chivalry is gone, swords are obsolete as weapons and nobody's life depends on the quality of his Katana, Shamshir or Shashka. Some of us still want to feel a small fraction of the thrill of sword wielding and cut empty Coke bottles, styrofoam noodles or green bamboo stalks in what they think is a "keeping of tradition". My kids, when they were little, fought dandelions in the backyard with plastic swords ( I did the same when I was their age ), and I see very little difference in the motivation and the enthusiasm of a 5 year-old with a sword from Toy-R-US in a backyard and a 40 year-old with a custom-made katana in a Dojo. Neither should be embarrassed in the least. It's just a game, no more. I would view practical tests that you suggest using an Assadollah's Shamshir or Masamune's Katana as acts of vandalism, akin to testing the durability of Rafael's paints by pouring acid on the canvas. This thread was about examining legends of wootz swords possessing almost magical qualities. We can use contemporary knowledge of metallurgy and what little actual info we have. The old accounts of incredible cutting feats seem to be exaggerated ( as Lee wisely mentioned, they are seen in all cultures, in all times, and are best suited to campfire chats). We shall never (hopefully!) be so dumb as to plan any practical tests. The money you mentioned is only a minor factor: it is the destruction of the object of art that would hopefully stop us from committing the folly. Until then, let kids behead dandelions, grown men pretend being samurai or vikings, metalworkers make better and better blades , with Kirk, without Kirk, this hardness, that resilience to cold temperatures, and then all of us can sit in our comfy armchairs with a glass of Grappa or beer and swap stories.