I recently had the great pleasure of being interviewed on The Sword Guy Podcast with Guy Windsor. Guy has a great podcast looking at the world of historical martial arts and the great diversity of those who are researching and practicing these combat arts of the past.
I've known Guy for many years and we have spent many an hour talking swords, but it has been a while since we had time to nosh about blades. So if you enjoy listening to a couple of self-confessed sword geeks talk about swords and those folks who use them, give a listen.
We cover a lot of areas but I thought I would highlight the two swords I mention in the interview.
One is a sword in private hands, I believe now in the US, but at the time the owner had a small medieval cottage in the west of England. It was a great feeling sword and I have a snap below of the hilt. The blade was inscribed Siege of Rome 1527. The sword had a long single-edged blade that was not very wide and had a back edged tip for several inches at the pointy end. The pommel was a wide fluted squashed sphere and the guard was roped with a side ring. An interesting and impressive sword. It was one of the first logswords I ever held.
The second sword I mention was the famous Swiss Saber (A489) in the Wallace Collection. The reproductions we have done of this sword brought to light many specific things swords makers did to enhance the use of the weapon. The sword's design is certainly well thought out and done by an excellent craftsperson, but also someone who had knowledge of how the sword would be used. Details of the design are specific to the wielder gaining an advantage in the fight.
Swiss Saber replica of (A489) in the Wallace Collection London
I hope you enjoy listening to a couple of sword lovers talking about our journeys down the paths swords have taken us and hopefully you may getting something good from our conversation.
The Sword Guy - Ep 33: Craig Johnson
Nathan Clough, Ph.D. is Vice President of Arms and Armor and a member of the governing board of The Oakeshott Institute. He is a historical martial artist and a former university professor of cultural geography. He has given presentations on historical arms at events including Longpoint and Combatcon, and presented scholarly papers at, among others, The International Congress on Medieval Studies.
Craig Johnson is the Production Manager of Arms and Armor and Secretary of The Oakeshott Institute. He has taught and published on the history of arms, armor and western martial arts for over 30 years. He has lectured at several schools and Universities, WMAW, HEMAC, 4W, and ICMS at Kalamazoo. His experiences include iron smelting, jousting, theatrical combat instruction and choreography, historical research, European martial arts and crafting weapons and armor since 1985.