The EARLY MAKERS TRADE MARKS thread... lost and partly restored.

[fernando]

Old 23rd December 2007, 07:01 PM

Posted by:
fernando
Lead Moderator European Armoury

Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: Portugal

IN NOMINE DOMINE = In the name of the Lord.
For reasons connected with the evolution of the sword, during the XII century, as blades acquired a certain form, the spiritual and religious sense of the Knights ( Cruzaders ) caused the frequent appearance of certain phrases, as also or together with the inclusion of names of sword smiths, which had already been practised during the XI century, namely in the Solingen area.
Explicit phrases like IN NOMINE DOMINI, HOMO DEI ( man of God ), or BENEDICTUS DEUS MES ( My blessed God ), as also initials like NEDRC NEDRU (Nomine Eterni Dei Regis Caeli/Universi), or BOAC (Beati Omnipotensque Angeli Christi), would give place to composite situations like IN NOMINE DOMINE/CICE LINE ME FECIT, Cice Line naturaly being the smith.
Amazingly this type of inscriptions was seen firstly in central Europe and specially England, and only after it gained intensity in Spain, round the XIV century.
https://calderobruja.wordpress.com/2...la-edad-media/
I would therefore infer that later expressions like IN MENE, IHN MINI and the like, are no more than corruptions of IN DOMINE DOMINI.
Concerning the sugestion that the symbols resembling anchors are after all decorated crosses, could well be true, though a bit hard to swallow. Maybe some further evidence comes to light, one of these days.
All the best
Fernando.
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