Interesting Sideswords
to learn from for the reproduction market
I am listing two sideswords that were sold in the past by Czerny’s International Auction House. I am grouping these to have a small discussion about elements I would like to see more often on HEMA trainers and the sharp reproduction market.
France, Last Quarter of the 16th Century
Straight double-edge, hexagonal section blade. Wooden handle covered with two-tone metal wire braid. The total length is given as 122cm.
Spain, 17th Century
Straight single-edged blade with a double-edged tip. Wooden handle covered in reptile skin with iron ring nuts and slats. The total length is given as 114cm.
Discussion
The French piece has two elements that I would like to see implemented more often. Old manuscripts show similar early rapiers with a long quillon span. The relatively wide blade excludes this as a rapier optimised for the Destreza traditions, where we usually see such a span. Yet, the quillons are generous (close to 36cm), indicating that other traditions utilised long quillons as well. We also see a pommel that is flattened. A fully rounded pommel that exceeds the width of the grip can impact how the rapier is held. Once a heavy glove is used, this can become a real problem. A simple design change, like a flat profile for the pommel, can alleviate this problem. We also see the end of the quillons matching the pommel for that bit of extra style.
The Spanish piece, in addition to a good hilt protection against hand snipes, has a well-shaped pommel that would sit comfortably at the base of the hand. This pommel would allow space for a heavy glove in HEMA or larger hands in general for sharps, without needing to extend the grip. At the same time, this pommel is more comfortable than an olive-shaped pommel that is overly represented on trainers.
The fascinating part, though, is the single-edge blade. Why don’t we see more of these blade types on sideswords? Once a sword has a knuckle bow, there is a clear false edge that can’t be swapped by rotating the sword in the hand. On sharps, single-edge blades would offer better results for backyard cutting, something that people care about. And on trainers, maybe it can result in more optimised profiles - think in reverse, with a thicker 3mm spine being on the true edge.
Overall, the Spanish piece, with a simple leather grip, should make for a sidesword that would be cost-effective to reproduce, i.e. parts that can be obtained using a lathe or obtained from shaping flattened bars to a satisfactory degree.