Welcome to the European Armoury!

Lee · 1st September 2008, 11:34 AM

Welcome! Actually, this subforum is not entirely new; when these forums were first started there was the Medieval Sword Readers Forum which persisted through to 2004 as the Medieval Sword Forum

With the move to the more robust vBulletin software, this forum was rolled into the general forum. My thinking then (and now) was that the term 'ethnographic' is very commonly (incorrectly) interpreted as referring exclusively to primitive, or at least 'alien,' cultures (and that interpretation probably worked pretty well in Victorian-era minds). But today, as the world 'shrinks,' much of the world and certainly those of us who use devices such as these forums are pretty much members of an increasingly global "modern industrialized society." From this frame of reference, in a world with the reality of automatic guns and smart bombs, the weapons and armour of our forebearers are all pretty quaint and exotic, be they katana, keris or European mediaeval sword.

However, there have been regular requests for the resurrection of this forum since it was merged and the absence of such a forum has been often cited as the primary reason for the disappearance of most such discussions from these forums. We have widened the scope to begin in antiquity (stone axe discussions welcome!) and promise not to gnarl if discussions drift into persistence of various forms as nineteenth century militaria (modern firearms are still better discussed elsewhere). It is, of course, always appropriate and your option to continue to post European items in the main general forum. Please do not start the same discussion in both forums.

Long term member Jim McDougall has consented to be our lead moderator in this section and he will be assisted by Ed, a knowledgeable and experienced collector with a focus on European items, and myself. Just as the keris subforum moderators team has a reasonable degree of autonomy to deviate from the rules of the general forum, so we may expect that this forum will develop its own culture and personality. This thread will be made sticky and the moderators will communicate such special rules as develop here below.

1st September 2008, 11:34 AM	#1
Lee EAAF Staff Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Upstate New York, USA Posts: 893	Welcome to the European Armoury! Welcome! Actually, this subforum is not entirely new; when these forums were first started there was the Medieval Sword Readers Forum which persisted through to 2004 as the Medieval Sword Forum With the move to the more robust vBulletin software, this forum was rolled into the general forum. My thinking then (and now) was that the term 'ethnographic' is very commonly (incorrectly) interpreted as referring exclusively to primitive, or at least 'alien,' cultures (and that interpretation probably worked pretty well in Victorian-era minds). But today, as the world 'shrinks,' much of the world and certainly those of us who use devices such as these forums are pretty much members of an increasingly global "modern industrialized society." From this frame of reference, in a world with the reality of automatic guns and smart bombs, the weapons and armour of our forebearers are all pretty quaint and exotic, be they katana, keris or European mediaeval sword. However, there have been regular requests for the resurrection of this forum since it was merged and the absence of such a forum has been often cited as the primary reason for the disappearance of most such discussions from these forums. We have widened the scope to begin in antiquity (stone axe discussions welcome!) and promise not to gnarl if discussions drift into persistence of various forms as nineteenth century militaria (modern firearms are still better discussed elsewhere). It is, of course, always appropriate and your option to continue to post European items in the main general forum. Please do not start the same discussion in both forums. Long term member Jim McDougall has consented to be our lead moderator in this section and he will be assisted by Ed, a knowledgeable and experienced collector with a focus on European items, and myself. Just as the keris subforum moderators team has a reasonable degree of autonomy to deviate from the rules of the general forum, so we may expect that this forum will develop its own culture and personality. This thread will be made sticky and the moderators will communicate such special rules as develop here below.