|
| | TO ORDER AND MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:
armor@castles.org
If you are interested in swords, we recommend this book!
 |
The Book of the Sword
Our Price: $7.96
Buy
This Book!
A must for sword and fencing enthusiasts!
Written in 1884, this book is full of the history and lore of the sword.
Richard Burton (not the actor) was a historian, an explorer, and a
fencer, and he managed to blend all three interests in this fascinating
biography of "the Queen of Weapons."
More books about spor
|
For
centuries, when the issue of a fight depended not only on the personal ability
of the fighter, but also on another decisive factor - the
perfection of his weapon -, with Toledo’s exceptional steel were
forged the most terrible arms in the world. Their extraordinary hardness
made of each of these swords an inventible force in the hands of an
expert swordsman. All European armies knew the superior quality of
Toledo’s steel and many great warriors relied only on sabers of
Toledan provenance.
Their origin comes from the most ancient Spanish customs. More than
2,000 years ago, in the 5th century B.C. , Iberian blacksmiths already
forged swords known as falcata which had an
iron blade inside and a special design made to increase the bluntness of
the slash.
Due to their fame, these swords were chosen by Hannibal for his army
and the Roman legions, defeated by those weapons, adopted them later and
supplied their centurions with the dread Toledan blades.
The times of Excalibur kind of sword passed
by. The Middle Ages blacksmiths exalted the office, as they relied more
and more on technological progress and not only on the good quality of
their steel. The Muslim armies feared the sword that had defeated them.
They didn’t revere only the hand of a Master - the Cid
Campeador - but also the excellence of his weapon, a
Toledan sword, of course! The Muslims adopted such a techniques to produce
their slender two-edged scimitars,
transmitting their secret from one generation to the other.
Then, the Toledan manufacturers would yield the famous rapiers
so well popularized thru d’Artagnan and his fellow Musketeers.
Also today’s Toledo is a quiet city with about 50,000 inhabitants, it
has been for a time the capital city of the widest empire in the world,
an empire “where sun never set”. Kings from all parts of the world
have had swords and sabers forged in Toledo. Even Japanese Samurai
were aware of the existence of Toledo’s steel as it had been
introduced by the Spanish merchants that followed the steps of the
Spanish and Portuguese Jesuits. As Japan lived in a state of continuous
civil war, it is not surprising that some of their Daimyos
even came to Toledo to have their katana and wakizashi
forged there. They knew how important was a perfect design and finish
for the effectiveness of a sword.
One example of what was once the most noble art in the world is no doubt
the gold inlaid hunting dagger of King Charles the Fourth, with the mark
and the name of the smith who did it engrave on it. Toledan craftsmen
can be rightfully proud of such a fine blade and splendid finish. This
art is actually disappearing because swords have been replaced by
another type of weapon, like pistols, guns, rifles.
The internal structure of the blade and the mystery of its fabrication
were a secret well kept by the manufacturers. It hasn’t been unraveled
until the 20th century! To make such an exceptional weapon, they had to
forge at the same time and at a very hot temperature hard steel with
high contents of carbon and soft steel. This way, they could obtain
excellent mechanical properties as well as a better fastness to wear.
An appropriate selection of raw materials, their adequate proportion in
the blade and the forging of both types of steel at a temperature of
1454 º F during the exact interval of time required, give the most
perfect sword ever built in the world.
In old ages, the blacksmiths used to recite psalms and prayers keeping
always the same rhythm, in order to calculate the time that the blade
would remain inside the furnace. This timing had to be respected to
avoid any deviance: a longer time would melt the steel too much and on
the contrary, a shorter one wouldn’t let the metal reach its
melting-point.
Forging requires forcefulness and efficiency in a very short time. Then
comes the following step: cooling with water or - sometimes - with oil,
to get a clear and clean welded seam. In some cases, the blacksmith had
to blow even 20,000 times in order to get a perfect tempering, but such
a level of perfection wouldn’t allow him to make more than 2 or 3
blades in a year!
In other parts of the world, craftsmen have tried to imitate the
perfection of Toledo’s steel, but they all failed. Damascus’s steel
was too hard, not at all flexible, because it contained only iron and
carbon and wasn’t refined of all the mineral impure elements.
Swedish steel was based on a soft steel, carburet in a furnace,
surrounded by animal horns and hair, leaves, etc. and heated at a
temperature of about 1650º F. Swords were also manufactured in Solingen
(Germany). There, they twisted together wires of different thickness and
carbon contents in order to get a threadlike structure that combined
hard and soft steel. the swords of Nimes (France) were also recognized
for their good quality.
But everywhere there were forgeries as the fame of Toledan swords was
unique in the world. If you could convince the buyer that the sword you
were trying to sell him was an authentic Toledan sword that came all the
way from the world capital of steel forging, you’d done a really good
deal. But of course, you’d better disappeared before he tried it! At
use, nothing could equal Toledan steel.
|
TO ORDER AND MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:
armor@castles.org
|
