A rapier by Pietro Hernandez

Iain · 14th April 2017, 01:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ulfberth

well maybe not a wolf but it looks like a dog to me

the blade looks indeed German, the position of the stamps on the ricasso and the running K9 all point in that direction

Sure, I wasn't disagreeing that it's a German blade, but I think often we are too quick to designate any vaguely four legged depiction of an animal as a running wolf. From memory the unicorn crops up from time to time as well on Passau blades.

fernando · 14th April 2017, 02:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Iain

Sure, I wasn't disagreeing that it's a German blade, but I think often we are too quick to designate any vaguely four legged depiction of an animal as a running wolf...

Amen

.

Jim McDougall · 16th April 2017, 12:47 AM

The perplexing case of these abstract animals depicted in these blades for yet unknown significance has been a notable feature for as many years as I can recall in my own research, as well as clearly included in the work of many writers.

Ewart Oakeshott in 1960, ("Archaeology of Weapons". N.Y. p.223) notes,
"...a mark which can easily be mistaken for the 'wolf' of Passau is a unicorn; since both wolf and unicorn are only very summarily sketched wth a few inlaid strokes; it needs the eye of faith to distinguish an animal at all; the examples of the unicorn I have met with look exactly the same as the wolves except they have a long straight stroke sticking out in front".

To carry the analogy further, in the well established cases of German trade blades imported into Sudan, Reed ("A Kaskara from Darfur", JAAS, 1985) notes that in examining a blade with a Fur chief, the chief thought the wolf was a hippopotamus!

16th April 2017, 12:47 AM	#3
Jim McDougall Arms Historian Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Route 66 Posts: 10,196	The perplexing case of these abstract animals depicted in these blades for yet unknown significance has been a notable feature for as many years as I can recall in my own research, as well as clearly included in the work of many writers. Ewart Oakeshott in 1960, ("Archaeology of Weapons". N.Y. p.223) notes, "...a mark which can easily be mistaken for the 'wolf' of Passau is a unicorn; since both wolf and unicorn are only very summarily sketched wth a few inlaid strokes; it needs the eye of faith to distinguish an animal at all; the examples of the unicorn I have met with look exactly the same as the wolves except they have a long straight stroke sticking out in front". To carry the analogy further, in the well established cases of German trade blades imported into Sudan, Reed ("A Kaskara from Darfur", JAAS, 1985) notes that in examining a blade with a Fur chief, the chief thought the wolf was a hippopotamus!