Full text of "The Anglo-Saxon weapon names treated archæologically and etymologically"

Anglistische Forschungen Herausgegeben von Dr. Johannes Hoops Professor an der Universit&t Heidelberg Heft 15 The Anglo-Saxon Weapon Names treated I archaeologically and etymologicallY by May Lansfield Keller CAMPBELL COLLECTION- Heidelberg Carl Winter's Universitatsbuchhandlung 1906 Vrlag.-Arehiy No. 78. Alle Rechte, besonders das Recht der ftbersetzung in fremde Sprachen, werden vorbehalten. Ill Introduction. In making public the following investigation of the weapon names in Anglo-Saxon, attention should be called to the fact that, owing to the frequent use of general terms, such as wsepen, seam etc., applied to equipment and ar- mour, and to that of the word sweord referring to sword, it has been deemed advisable not to include all references to the same, such only having been selected as are of interest either from an etymological or archaeological stand- point. Furthermore, for a full list of the words (in simplex) used in Epic poetry to designate the coat of mail, which in prose refer usually to an ordinary garment, reference has been made to a dissertation on Die altenglischen Kleidernamen by Lilly L. Stroebe, Heidelberg 1904. It is regretted that the dissertation by R. Wagner on Die AngrifFswaffen der Angelsachsen was received after the completion of the present investigation, so that com- parison of results has been impossible. The compiler also avails herself of this opportunity to express her thanks and feeling of profound indebtedness to Professor Johannes Hoops, of the University of Heidel- berg, for his ever ready suggestion and aid in the plan- ning and execution of the work. IV Owing to the necessity of having all proof-sheets sent from Heidelberg to America for correction, and as a result of having to read the first sheets while travelling from place to place, some even being lost in forwarding, the difficulties of proof- correction for the present volume have been well-nigh insurmountable. To this fact, then, is due the appended list of corrections, and the mistakes still remaining may also be attributed to the same cause, as well as to the failure to receive all of the final proof-sheets. Baltimore, Md., Sept. 1905. May Lansfield Keller. Table of Contents. Page. List of Abbreviations VII Bibliography. 1. Old English Texts examined 1 2. Archaeological and philological Books of Reference . 5 First Part. Antiquarian Investigation. I. Introductory: General Survey of Weapons in use among the Anglo-Saxons IB H. The Weapons of Attack 18 1. The Spear 18 2. The Sword and its Attachments 31 3. Bow and Arrow . 48 4. Axe 56 5. Sling 62 6. War club 64 7. Engines of War 65 III. The Weapons of Defence 67 1. The Shield 67 2. The Helmet 79 3. The Body Armour 93 4. Greaves Ill Second Part. Philological Investigation. I. General Terms 113 t II. Weapons of Attack 128 1. The Spear 128 2. The Sword and its Attachments 155 3. Bow and Arrow 197 4. Miscellaneous ... . . 215 VI Page. III. Weapons of Defence 224 1. The Shield . . 224 2. The Helm 242 3. Body Armour 255 4. Greaves 270 Corrections 272 Alphabetical Index 274 VII List of Abbreviations. Av. = Avesta. Du. = Dutch. f. = feminine. Fr. = French. Germ. = Germanic. Gl. = Glossary. Gr. = Greek. Idg. = Indogermanic. Icel. = Icelandic. It. = Italian. m. = masculine. Merc. = Mercian. ME. = Middle English. MDu. = Middle Dutch. MHG. = Middle High German. MLG. = Middle Low German. MS. = Manuscript. MLat. = Middle Latin. n. = neuter. NE. = New or Modern English. NFr. = New French. NHG. = New High German. NLG. = New Low German. North. = Northumbrian. OE. = Old English. OFries. = Old Friesian. OFr. == Old French. OHG. = Old High German. 01. = Old Indian. OCSlav. = Old Church Slavic. ODu. = Old Dutch. ON. = Old Norse. OPruss. = Old Prussian. OEuss. = Old Kussian. OSax. = Old Saxon. Port. = Portugese. Prov. = Provencal. rt. = root. Span. = Spanish. Skt. = Sanskrit. WGerin. = West Germanic. Bibliography. 1. Old English Texts examined. Ae&elst. = The Victory of Ae&elstan at Brunanburh, Bibl. Poes. I, 374. Kluges Ags. Lesebuch, 128 ff. Aelfrc. Es. = Aelfric's book of Esther, edited by Assmann in Anglia, Bd. IX. Aelfc. Gr. and Aelfc. Gl. = Aelfric's Grammar and Glossar, ed. Jul. Zupitza, Samml. engl. Denkm., Bd. I. Berlin 1880. The Glossary corresponds to the vocabulary printed by WW. at p. 304 ff., 536 ff. Aelfc. L. S. See Homl. Skt. Aelfc. Horn. = The Homilies of Aelfric, ed. Benj. Thorpe. 2 vols. London 1843. Aelfc. IS. = Aelfric's Version of Alcuini Interrogationes Sigewulfi in Genesin. Ed. by Mac Lean in Anglia, Bd. VI and VII. A. L. = Ancient Laws and Institutes of England. Ed. B. Thorpe. London 1840. Ags. Lesebuch mit Glossar, Fr. Kluge, 3. Aufl. Halle 1902. An. = Andreas, Bibl. Poes. H, Iff. Ap. = Die Schicksale der Apostel, Bibl. Poes. II, p. 87 ff. As. = Azarias, Bibl. Poes. HI, p. 491 a. 516 ff. B. = Beowulf, Bibl. Poes. I, 149 ff. Bd.= Old English version of Bede's Ecclesiastical History. Ed. T. Miller, EETS. 95, 96. Benet = The rule of St. Benet (Interlinear Version), ed. by H. Loge- man, London-Utrecht 1888. Bibl. Poes. = Bibliothek der ags. Poesie, begrundet von Ch. W. M. Grein, neu bearbeitet von K. P. Wiilker. 3 Bde. Kassel 1881 ff. Keller, The Anglo-Saxon Weapon Names. 1 Bibl. Prs. = Bibliothek der ags. Prosa, begrttndet von Grein, fort- gesetzt von Wulker. 5 Bde. 1872 ff. SI. Gl. = Blickling Glossaries to the Psalms (s. Bl. Homl.). SI Homl. The Blickling Homilies of the tenth cent. (971), ed. R. Morris. EETS. 58, 63, 73. Boet. = Metra des Boetius. Bibl. Poes. Ill, 247 ff. Bot. = Botschaft des gemahis, Bibl. Poes. I, p. 306 ff. By. = Byrhtnoth's Death, Bibl. Poes. I, 358 ff. Cant Ps. = Eadwine's Canterbury Psalter, ed. F. Harsley, Part II, Text. EETS. 92. (According to Wanley about the time of Stephen 113554 cf. Napier PBB. 23.) Cant. H. = The Hymns s. Cant. Ps. Chart. Th. = Diplomatarium Anglicum aevi Saxonici. Ed. Thorpe. London 1865. Chron. = Two of the Saxon Chronicles parallel with supplementary extracts from the others, ed. Ch. Plummer on the basis of an edit, by F. Earle. 2 Bde. Oxford 1892. Cod. Bruss. = Die ae. Glossen der Cod. 1650 der kOnigl. Bib- liothek zu Brussel. Anglia VI. Ed. by Hausknecht. Cod. Dip. = Codex diplomatics aevi Saxonici, ed. J. M. Kemble, London 183948. 6 vols. Corp. = Corpus Glossar GET., p. 35 ff. (The same as in WW. 154). Cra. = Bi Monna Creeftum, Bibl. Poes. HI, 140 ff. Cri. = Cynewulfs Crist, Bibl. Poes. HI, Iff. Dan. = Daniel, Bibl. Poes. II, 476 ff. Dom. = Domes Day (Exon), Bibl. Poes. II, p. 250. DVF. = De visionibus Fursei, from MS. jun. No. 23, Bibl. Bodl. oxon. fol. 48 r. A translation of the Latin legend of Fursaeus in Anglo-Saxon. See R. A. Ed. Wright, p. 276. El. = Elene, Bibl. Poes. II, 126 ff. Ep. Al. = Epistola Alexandri ad Aristotelem. Ed. Baskerville, Angl. IV. 139. Ep. Erf. = Epinal and Erfurt Glossaries. GET., p. 36 ff. Exod. = Exodus, Bibl. Poes. H, 445 ff. Feed. lar. Des Vaters Lehren, Bibl. Poes. I, 353 ff. Fin. = The Battle of Finsburg, Bibl. Poes. I, 14. G. B. = Cartularium Saxonicum, Ed. W. de Gray-Birch. 3 vols. London 1885 93 (quoted according to number of paragraph and year). Gen. = Genesis, Bibl. Poes. II, 318 ff. Ges. lAeberm. = Gesetze der Angelsachsen, ed. F. Liebermann. 2 Lieferungen (bis zu Cnuts Gesetzen inch). Halle 1898 ff. Gn. Cott. = Bibl. Foes. I, 338. Gn. Ex. = Bibl. Poes. I, 341. Gosp. Mt., Mk., Lie., Jh. = The Gospels according to St. Matthew etc. in Anglo-Saxon and Northumbrian versions synoptically arranged by WW. Skeat. Cambridge 18711887. Gud-. = GudJac, Bibl. Poes. Ill, 55 ff. Ho. Ho'llenfahrt Christi, Bibl. Poes. HI, p. 175 ff. Horn. Ass. = Ags. Homilien und Heiligenleben (1116 Werke Aelfrics). Ed. B. Assmann, Bibl. Poes. UI, Kassel 1889. Horn. Skt. = Aelfric's Lives of the Saints, ed. WW. Skeat. EETS. 76, 82, 94, 114. 2 vols. Hpt. ai = Haupt Glossar in Z. f. d. Alter. IX, 401530, ed. by Bouterwek. Jodie. Judicum, Bibl. Prs. I, 253 ff. Jud. = Judith, Bibl. Poee. II, 294 ff. Jul = Juliana, Bibl. Poes. Ill, 117 ff. Leechd. = Leechdoms, wortcunning and starcraft of early England, ed. 0. Cockayne, London 186466. 3 vols. Leid. = Das Leidener Glossar. Text der Hds. Programm des Kgl. humanistischen Gymnasiums St. Stephan in Augsburg 1901. Verfafit von P. Plazidus Glogger. Lind. = North. Lindisfarne Glossary to the four Gospels (or Dur- ham Book), s. Gospels. Mart. = An Old English Martyrology, ed. G. Herzfeld. EETS. 116. M. C. Anglo-Saxon Metrical Charm, printed in Reliquae Anti- quae (s. Wright), vol. II, p. 237, from MS. Harl. No. 585, fol. 175 r, from a book of medical receipts written in the 10 th cent. Men. = Menologium seu Calendarium Poeticum ex Hickesiano Thesauro. Ed. by. Fox, London 1830. Mod. = Bi Manna Mode, Bibl. Poes. Ill, 144 ff. OEG-l = Old English Glosses, ed. A. S. Napier. Anecdota Oxo- niensia 1900 (quoted according to sections). OET. = The oldest English Texts, ed. H. Sweet. London 1858. (Urk. = 7th _ gth cen t. charters ib., p. 421 ff.) Or. = King Alfred's Orosius Translation, ed. H. Sweet, EETS. 79. Pan. = The Panther, Bibl. Poes. Ill, p. 164 ff. Past. = King Alfred's West-Saxon version of Gregory's Pastoral Care, ed. H. Sweet, EETS. 45, 50. i* Phar. = Pharao, Bibl. Poes. Ill, p. 182. Ph. Phoenix, Bibl. Poes. Ill, 95 ff. Prs. Deut. = Deuteronomy, Bibl. Prosa I, 201 ff. Prs. Exod. = Exodus, Bibl. Prosa I, HOff. Prs. Gen. = Genesis, Bibl. Prosa I, 25 ff. Prs. Job = Job, Bibl. Prosa I, 265 ff. Prs. Josh. = Joshua, Bibl. Prosa I, 235 ff. Prs. Levit. = Leviticus, Bibl. Prosa I, 166 ff. Prs. Numb. = Numbers, Bibl. Prosa I, 179 ff. Ps. = Psalmes, Bibl. Poes. Ill, 332 ff. Ps. Spl. Psalterium Davidis Latino Saxonicum vetus a Johanno- Spellmanno editum. London 1640. Quoted from B. T. JR 1 . = Mercian Rushworth Glossary to Matthew. JR 2 . = Northumbrian Rushworth Glossary to Mark, Luke, John (s. Gospels). JR. A. = Reliquae Antiquae. Scraps from Ancient MSS. illustra- ting chiefly early English literature and the English language, Ed. by Thomas Wright and James Halliwell. London 1843. 2vols, Eeim. = Reimlied, Bibl. Poes. Ill, p. 157 ff. Eidls. = The Riddles of the Cod. Exod., Bibl. Poes. Ill, p. 183 ff. Run. = Runenlied, Bibl. Poes. I, 331 ff. Kluge ags. Lesebuch 152 ff. Ruth. Cross. = Ruthwell Cross. Traumgesicht vom Kreuze, BibL Poes. H, p. lllff. Sal. = Salomon and Saturn, Bibl. Poes. in, 304 ff. Sat. = Christ and Satan, Bibl. Poes. II, p. 521 ff. Sch. = Wunder der SchOpfung, Bibl. Poes. in, p. 152 ff. Seef. = Seefahrer, Bibl. Poes. I, p. 290 ff. Spl. 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Oxford 1891. Strutt, J., A Complete view of the dress and habits of the people of England from the Establishment of the Saxons in Britain to the present time. 179699. Sweet, Hist, of English Sounds. Oxford 1888. Stud. Die. The Student's Dictionary of Anglo-Saxon. Oxford 1897. Tacitus, Annales et Germania. Thomsen. Den gotiske Sprogklasses indflydelse pa den finske. K0- benhavn 1869. Thorpe, Benj., Antiquities in Kent hitherto undescribed. Bib. Top. Brit. Vol. I. Thurneysen, Keltoromanisches. Halle 1884. Tidskr. f. Phil. og. Paed. = Tidskrift for Philologi og Paedagogik. KOpenh. 1860 ff. Tours, Gregory of, Hist. Francorum. Uhleribeck, KurzgefaBtes Etym. WOrterbuch der altind. Sprache. Amsterdam 1898. Kurzgefafites Etym. Wb. der got. Sprache. Amsterdam 1900. Flav. Vegetius Renatus, Epitoma institutionum militaris. 5 vols. Pub. by Lang. Leipzig 1869. Verwijs en Verdam, Middelnederlandsch Woordenboek. 3. Bd. (A-K) 1885 ff. 12 Vigf. = An Icelandic Eng. Die. by R. Cleasby, enlarged and com- pleted by G. Vigfusson. Oxford 1874. Vglsung. = Vglsunga Saga, herausgeg. v. Wm. Ranisch nach Bugges Text. Berlin 1891. Wagner, Richard, Die Angriffswaffen der Angelsachsen. Ko'nigs- berger Diss. Weinhold, Altnordisches Leben. Berlin 1865. Weift, Koetiimkunde, Geschichte der Tracht und des Gerates im Mittelalter vom 4. bis zum 14. Jahrhundert. Stuttgart 1864. Westwood, J. O., The Miniatures and Ornaments of Anglo-Saxon and Irish MSS. Oxford 1862. Worsaae, Zur Altertumskunde des Nordens. Leipzig 1847. WiduTcind, Res gestae Saxonicae. Herausgeg. von Pertz. Wright, Dial.-Dict. = The English Dialect Dictionary. 3 Bde. (A-L) Oxford 1898 ff. Wright, Thomas, The Celt, the Roman, and the Saxon. Wylie, W. M., Remarks on the Angon or barbed javelin of the Franks as described by Agathias. Also Arch. XXXV, p. 48 ff. London 1853. Fairford Graves. Oxford 1852. Account of Teutonic remains apparently Saxon found near Dieppe. Arch. XXXV, 100113. An account of an excavation at Envermeu. Arch. XXXV, p. 223. Z. Z. = Zachers Zeitschrift. Z. f. d. A. = Zeitschrift fur deutsches Altertum. Herausgeg. von Haupt, Mttllenhoff, Steinmeyer, Schroder und G. Roethe. Leip- zig 184153. Berlin 1856 ff. Zupitza, E., Die germanischen Gutturale. Berlin 1896. 13 - First Part. Antiquarian Investigation. I. Introductory: General Survey etc. To present with any degree of accuracy a picture of the war -equipment of the Germanic invaders of Great Britain, from the tune of their first settlement in the is- land to the year of the Norman Conquest 1066, three prime factors must be taken into consideration: The testimony of historians, such as Agathias, Sidonius Apolli- naris, Jordanes and others, with regard to the war-equipment of the various Germanic tribes of the continent; further- more the entire range of the Anglo-Saxon literature with especial reference to Beowulf and poems such as the Elene or the Judith dealing principally with battles. The illu- minations of the MSS. both on the continent and in England from the 8 th century on. The grave-finds both in England and on the continent, covering the period between the 5 th and 7 th centuries, especial attention being given to Frankish remains, which with some few exceptions are identical with those of the Anglo-Saxons. Simple as this may seem at first sight, the task is accompanied with many difficulties, for the historical testimony is many times contradictory, the epic poems 14 deal only with equipment of kings and great heroes, while the drawings of the MSS. are often mere conventional representations, frequently of Roman or Byzantine originals, and the grave-finds in more than one instance fail to corroborate history and poetry. On the whole, however, allowing for the aristocratic tendency of the epic, together with certain historical anachronisms, and by carefully comparing the grave-finds of Selzen in Germany, Lon- donie'res in Normandy, and Kent in England the arms and equipment of Franks and Anglo-Saxons between the 5 th and 10 th centuries may be ascertained with a fair degree of certainty. 1 Before entering upon the details, a general survey of the equipment of the Anglo-Saxons at this early period may be given. The spear was the chief weapon of the Anglo- Saxons as the framea (longspear) had been among the Germans at the time of Tacitus. 2 These spears were of two kinds, a lighter and a heavier; one spear at least, and often two, having been found in the graves of almost every warrior, usually with the point to the ward to head, while in the Selzen graves they are reversed according to the Roman practice. The battle axe is rarely found in English graves (8 in all) though rarely wanting in the graves of Frankish warriors. The swords, as will be shown later, in the early period were very precious and costly possessions belonging 1 For a discussion of the mortuary urns discovered in Norfolk, Suffolk, Cambridgeshire, Derbyshire, Sussex and their relation so those found in Jutland, parts of Friesland, on the borders of the Elbe, in Westphalia, Thuringia, in parts of Saxony etc. S. Kemble, Hor. Fer., p. 87. 8 Germ. C. VI. 15 only to princes and warriors of wealth and rank, while the ordinary soldier carried only a spear. These swords were either the heavy two-edged broad sword corresponding to the Roman spata, or the one-edged Scrama seax so numerous in Frankish, so rare in Anglo-Saxon interments. 1 Bows were also used for war as well as the chase as a description of a battle in Beowulf proves, and slings were in use among the ordinary warriors. Of the protective armour the shield alone was in the possession of all warriors. This was usually of linden- wood with an iron umbo or boss, the randbeag, in the centre to protect the hand, and serve as a weapon of offence in close conflict, while the edge was further strengthened by an iron band, or rim. In the case of princes gold and precious metals replaced the iron, while metal shields, though probably rare, were not unknown. The helmet, as the sword, was the property only of the wealthy, one certainly, two probably (the second being doubtful) having been found in the many hundreds of graves opened, and it is strongly to be suspected that many of the helms were simply leather caps strengthened with metal, (cf. galea: le&erhelm in the glosses) which in the course of time has entirely disappeared. That metal helms existed, however, at the time of the Saxon invasion of England is certain from the description of the boar- adorned helmets of the Beowulf epic. The body armour consisted of a leather coat fre- quently stiffened with metal for the ordinary soldiers, 1 This rather negatives the idea that they are the weapons from which the Saxons are supposed to have taken their name ; cf. Gotfridus Witerbiensis : Ipse brevis gladius apud illos Saxo vocatur, unde sibi Saxo nomen peperisse notatur. A misunderstanding of the two words sahs and Sahso. - 16 and the tyrne or shirt made of iron rings either woven together or sewn upon other material for the chief war- riors of wealth and rank, which even as late as the 10 th century was regarded as a costly possession. Later came metal greaves for the protection of the legs, but at this period the warriors fought for the most part bare-legged, or perhaps in the long leather boots and leg bandages represented in the MSS. of the 9 th and 10 th centuries. Flags, drums, horns, and trumpets were part of every army's equipment, and remains of horses, bridles have in some few instances been found in the graves. From the above then it is evident that at the time of the invasion, and during the early Anglo-Saxon period, the ordinary warrior was provided with spear and shield, possessed some sort of a leather shirt or coat for the protection of his body, and wore most likely a leather cap resembling a helmet, while swords, helmets, and corselets were the property only of the picked troops or celebrated warriors. The same holds true for the Frankish warriors of this early period, and even at the time of the Carolingians - arma, id est scutum et lanceam 1 were still the equipment of the ordinary soldier. At the time of the Carolingians, both in France and England, swords nevertheless were becoming more frequent, although still costly, and helms and corselets began to be more general. In England, in the period following the Carolingian, metal greaves were introduced, the Mlsbeorg for the pro- tection of the neck, and at the very end of the Anglo- S. Capit. of Charl. from year 806, ed. Baluze, p. 450. 17 Saxon period the gavelock from the Celts and the cross- bow from the French. Immediately following the Conquest the long bow came into general use, which was employed with such telling effect by the English in the Hundred Years' War, and the nasale or nose protector (may possibly have been known previously), which developed in the 12 th and 13 th centuries into the visor. The Anglo-Saxons following the tradition of the old military tactics of the Germans of the continent fought in a wedge shaped formation with their king or leader on foot at their head, while the heavy infantry formed the point and wings, the light armed being placed at the centre. 1 They were divided according to districts, as were the Germans of the time of Tacitus according to tribes, and until the time of the Norman Conquest the infantry, not the cavalry, formed the main body of the army. 2 Following the Norman Conquest came a complete revolution in war tactics, the introduction by the Normans of the Feudal System together with Chivalry raised the cavalry, composed of Norman knights, to the first rank, which, united to the sturdy Anglo-Saxon infantry armed with the famous long bow, formed an almost invincible army. This process of amalgamation and reconstruction lies, however, beyond the Anglo-Saxon period, belonging rather to the history of Chivalry and the Middle Ages where its development may be traced in such works as San Martes Waffenkunde in der Ritterzeit, Kohler, Jahns and others mentioned in the Bibliography. 1 Of. the formation at the battle of Hastings. Ko'hler, Die Entw. des Kriegsw. u. der Kriegsfiihr. in der Ritterzeit, p. Iff. 2 Cf. Roger of Hoveden, who, writing of a battle in 1055, says : Anglos contra morem in equis pugnare jussit. Keller, The Anglo-Saxon Weapon Names. 2 18 II. The Weapons of Attack. Turning now to a more specific examination of the weapons, it will be seen at once that they fall naturally into two main divisions first the weapons of attack, and second the weapons of defence, each of which may again be divided into several subdivisions, which will here be treated of more in detail than was possible in the preceding general sketch. An exhaustive treatment of the same, however, has not been attempted, the results of most excavations of Anglo-Saxon interments having appeared from time to time in the Arch., in Collec. Antiqua, and in various arch, journals, while Linden- schmidt's Merov. Altertumer, and L'Abbe Cochet's La Norm. Sout. are exhaustive treatises on the subject in their respective countries. 1. The Spear. De Baye. Indus. Art of the Anglo-Saxon, PI. I. Neville. Saxon Obsequies, Pis. XXXV, XXXVI. Smith. Collec. Antiqua, Vol. Ill, PI. I, figs. 1025. Wylie. Fairford Graves, PI. XI, figs. 17. As the shield is the oldest weapon of defence, so is the spear that of aggression. Used for the chase as well as for war it served a double purpose, and from the first simple wooden shaft with fire-hardened head, through the successive stages of development in the Stone, Bronze, and Iron Ages to its culminating point in the knightly lance of the Middle Ages, it has remained among the Germanic peoples the weapon par excellence not only of the ordi- nary soldier, but together with ' the sword has been found in the graves of those of noble birth. Symbol 19 - of kingship among the Northern tribes 1 , weapon of Wodan, badge of authority, and mark of the free man 2 it has played among Norsemen, Franks, and Anglo-Saxons an ^,11 important roll. From it the male line took its name spere-healf, as the female line from the spindle, and the spear was the constant companion of the warrior in time of peace as well as in war. 3 From the time of Tacitus reference to the bearing of spears by the German tribes has constantly been made by Latin historians. 4 The citations, however, will be here omitted excepting the three most important bearing directly on the use of this weapon by the Franks from the 5 th to the 8 th century, interesting for the sake of comparison with the similar Anglo-Saxon usage during this period. A citation from the Greek historian Agathias will also be given below. In the middle of the 5 th century Sidonius Apollinaris writing of the Franks speaks of dypeosque rotare ludus, et intortas praecedere saltibus hastas (Panag. Major.). In the 6 th century appear in Gregory of Tours 5 the hurling spear together with the sword, axe, and dagger or knife 1 Cf. Lind., Alt. d. Merov. Zeit, fig. 201, for a representation of Childeric I., spear in hand, on his sealring. Cf. also Gregor of Tours VIII, 33, who writing of Gunthramnus giving the spear to Childeberti says: Hoc est indicium quod tibi omne regnum meum tradidi. 2 A special Edict of Charl. forbidding lances to those not free born. Ut servi lanceas non portent, gui inventus fuerit post bannum hasta frangatur in dorso ejus, 3 S. A. L. Th. XXXVI, p. 37, regarding wergeld for injury from spear not carried properly over the shoulder. 4 S. San Marte, p. 157 ff., and Lind., Merov. Altertiimer, p. 170ff. 5 Lib. II, c. 27. 2* - 20 - as the ordinary equipment of the Frankish warrior 1 , while in the same century Procopius assigns the spear to the cavalry only, and neither spear nor bow but only the axe to the Frankish infantry. This in all probability, however, has reference to the equipment for this expedition only r namely that of Theodobert I. into Italy, and cannot be taken for the prevailing custom, as shortly afterwards Agathias (7 th cent.) describes the Frankish foot soldiers as armed not only with the regular spear, but with the more unusual angon 2 , which is hardly to be explained by the supposition that in the course of a few years the Franks had given up the spear as infantry weapon, and then suddenly adopted it again, but rather that the passages in the writers, who omit it as part of every warrior's regular equipment, are descriptions of special expeditions, and not of the Frankish army as a whole. From the year 806 3 comes a special edict of Charl. de Armis non portandis, where arma = shield and spear, and from 813 a writ concerning the arming of troops where every soldier among other weapons must be provided with spear and shield, which proves it at this time as in the earlier period to have been the weapon of all classes. 4 The MSS. mostly from the 9 th and 10 th centuries, though the one of chief interest (Harleian 603) is of a still later date, lead to exactly the same result concerning the Anglo-Saxon use of the spear (cf. the Psalter Aureum 5 1 Cf. also Greg, of Tours III, 10; V, 26; VII, 29. 2 Lib. H, c. 5. Capit. in, No. I. (Ed. Baluze, p. 449.) 4 Capit II, No. IX. (Ed. Baluze, p. 508.) 8 Psalter. Aureum IX and X, and the Utrecht Psalter, Taf. IV (pub. by Anton Springer). 21 and the Utrecht Psalter) where the horsemen and foot- men alike are armed with round shield and spear, the angon being the predominating form. The Harl. MSS. shows throughout the fighting men armed with either angon or spear with crossbars, while only picked warriors have sword, axe, or bow and arrows. In the Aelfric MSS. (Claudius B. IV) the warriors are as frequently armed with the sword as with the spear, while the shepherds have only the spear, which points to a more general use of the sword at this time, but in general the MSS. show many more spears than swords. From the laws of Canute, moreover, concerning Heriot it may be seen that double the number of spears and shields is required as the number of swords, corselets, and helms, while all those under the rank of thane are armed not with the sword, but with the spear. 1 As stated above the spear of the Anglo-Saxons con- sisted of the heavy spear used both for hurling and thrusting, and the lighter dart for hurling only. To the latter belong the daro&, the pti, the gafeluc. and the angon, while the gar, and setgar may be either light or heavy. The franca also may be regarded from the pas- sages in By. as equivalent to gar, while the general Germ, expression spere refers to a light kind of throwing spear, as well as a spear for thrusting, the usual interpretation. As proof of this statement cf. the passage from Ep. Alex. 153 362 , mid longsceaftum sperum ofscotadon, or from the Sax. Chron. (AD. 1055) Ac %r fzer wsere xnig spere gescoten, both of which certainly point to the hurling of the spear, as the term scoten is not used in reference to thrusting. 1 Ges. Lieberm., p. 358 [71 ff.], and cf. sword, Part I, p. 33. 22 Turning now to the grave-finds the contents of these- interments both in England and Germany fully corro- borate the historical evidence, as well as that of the laws and MSS., for in few warriors' graves heretofore opened has the spear head been found wanting, in some, in fact y opened at Little Wilbraham and Gilton, two have been discovered both, the heavy gar, and the lighter darod, the latter with a length of 9 inches from the Gilton graves. 1 The spear consisted of three parts: the head, the shaft, and the iron into which the wood of the shaft was fitted. 2 Sometimes, however, the latter consisted of a button to be driven into the staff by means of a nail issuing from the centre. This spike was probably used to plant the spear in the ground, thereby forming a wall to break the charge of cavalry. In most of the graves this spike has been found at the right side of the body about six feet from the spear head thus giving an approximate length to the spear shaft of six feet, the wood of which has long since- rotted away, but enough of which remained in a few instances to be identified with certainty as ash. From the use of ash wood for spear shafts has arisen the poetical term for spear, xs6 9 found so frequently in the epic poetry, but never in prose cf. By. 310 sesc acwehte; Wand. 99 eorlas fornoman easca $ryde, wxpen wselgifru; B. 330 garas, sesc-holt ufan grseg etc. Owing to its universal use both for throwing and thrusting 3 , for the chase and for war, the spear heads 1 For the arrangement in grave cf. Smith, Collec. Antiq. in, p. 3. 2 Cf. Fair. Graves, PI. XI and Pag. Sax., PL IX. 8 Cfj B. 1766 gares fliht which points to throwing spear; Gaungu Hrolf s Saga c. 18. Soti haffri atgeirr atvega me& ok to> spear for thrusting. 23 varied greatly both in form, size, and weight, from great sword like points 2 ft. long 1 , or the ango with its length of 3 to 4 ft., to the light dart not exceeding 8 inches in length, while the weight of some of these may be inferred from such an expression as garb earn, the spear tree Exod. 246. Cf. also the much later description in the Nib. (B. 73) for the description of Siegfried's spear Siwit der fuort ir einen (ger) wol zwei spannen Ireit. A minute description of the countless spear heads of this period from the graves of Germany, France, and England, more than 20 varieties of the Anglo-Saxon type alone being on exhibition in the Brit. Mu., can not here be attempted, the ordinary varieties and a few of the rarer ones only will be discussed, accurate classifications being found in Hewitt 2 and Lindenschmidt. 3 The simplest type of spear as well as the oldest is the Frankish spear found in the grave of Childeric 4 , which does not exceed a foot in length. This type has been found in many of the German graves, also in those of Belgium, France 5 , and England, though not in such great numbers. The leaf shaped spear heads resemble closely the Roman type and are light and short. A noted example of this class is the famous Miincheberg spear with the runic inscription. 6 This class is but seldom found in England, the most frequently occurring form has a lo- 1 S. specimen in Brit. Mu. 2 Ancient Arms and Armour, Sec. I. 8 Merov. Altertiimer, p. 173 ff. 4 S. Merov. Altert, fig. 49. 5 Cf. Cochet, La Norm. Sout., p. 284 ff. 6 S. Anz. d. Mus. Niirnberg XIV 1867, No. 2. 24 zenge- shaped head (Lind. fig. 62), which can be infinitely varied by making it more or less slender. This type is found everywhere in the graves of Germany, France, and England in great number and variety. The typical Anglo- Saxon spear head is almost lozenge - shaped 1 but with a somewhat longer point than the Frankish spear heads of the same class, the greatest number of A.-S. spear heads so far discovered being variations of this type. The blades were always of iron, the specimens found varying in length usually from 10 to 15 inches, one, however, from Little Wilbraham, Cambridge, having a length of but 2 l /2 inches (of Lat. spicula i. sagitte: garas OE. GL), while some at Ozingell, Kent have a length of 21 inches. 2 One extremely interesting specimen from Ash 3 slopes from the socket two ft. to the shoulder of the blade, which does not exceed 3 1 /* inches in length and a quarter of an inch in width in its broadest part. 4 These spear heads were attached to the shaft by means of rivets passing through the socket into the wood beneath. The cusps were of two kinds either with a socket into which the wooden handle fitted or with a spike to drive into the wood, examples of the latter, however, are ex- tremely rare, the best coming from Livonia, at present in the Brit. Mu., together with a few from A.-S. graves. 5 A ferule of bronze or iron was added to the socketed spear head at its juncture with the staff to insure additio- 1 S. de Baye, PL I, fig. 3. 2 S. Neville, Sax. Obseq., PL XXXV and XXXVI. 3 S. Douglas, Nen. Brit., PL VIII. 4 For a specimen 2 ft. 5 1 /* inches long, s. Horae Ferales, PL XXVH, fig. 4. 5 Cf. Smith Collec. Antiq., Vol. HI, PL I. 25 nal strength. 1 A peculiar feature of the A.-S. cusps, which is characteristic for all varieties, and distinguishes them from the Danish and Frankish, which they closely resemble, in all other respects is the longitudinal slit in the socket, which received the wooden staff, and was then closed with iron or bronze rings, braided string or rivets. 2 Comparing these with the Frankish remains 3 the difference will be observed at once, only three of the entire German collection possessing this slit. A moment's survey of the number of spears recovered in comparison to the number of swords will give an idea of the rarity of the latter, and the great abundance of the former. Thus 125 graves opened at. L. Wilbraham yielded 35 spears to 4 swords, from Barrington 15 spear heads no swords, from Gilton 23 spear heads and 34 darts to 7 swords out of 106 graves examined, from 308 graves at Kingston Down 30 darts and 12 spears to 1 sword, from 181 graves at Siebertswold 20 darts, 22 spear heads to 6 swords (Invent Sepul.), from Faversham 45 spear heads to 20 swords, a most unusual find. 4 The adornment of spears was not so rich as that of swords, nevertheless several spear heads have been discovered in A.-S. interments ornamented with engraved lines, and decorated with silver. 5 Mention occurs, moreover, of a gar 1 Cf. Arch. Jour. XI, p. 106, and VIII, p. 425. 2 Cf. Collec. Antiq., Vol. Ill, PL I, fig. 18. Hewitt, Ancient Arms and Armour, p. 22, 23. De Baye, PL I. 3 Lind, Merov. Altert., figs. 49-70. 4 S. Smith, A Catalogue of Antiquities discovered at Favers- ham in Kent. 5 Cf. Sussex Arch. Jour., Vol. II, p. 269, Kemble, and Hor. Fer., PL XXVII, fig. 6. 26 golde fah Gn. (C.) 22, and in the will of Wulfsige a gold wreken spere 1 , so that gold and silver spear heads for kings' weapons are very likely. Kegarding the strap for swinging the spear, the Lat, amentum, A.-S. sceaft-Io, sceaft-tog (?) nothing further is known than the passage from Isid. 2 Of the unusual spear heads 3 only will be dealt with: the ango, the la nee a uncata of Sid. Apoll., and the head with its sides formed on different planes. Of these the ango A.-S. onga, is the most unusual in the grave-finds, the most frequent in the MSS. 3 , and the most interesting both because of its unusual form, and the minute description of the method of wielding it given by Agathias II c. 5, who describing the battle in Campania where the allied forces of the Franks and Alemannen were overthrown by Narses 554 A. D. gives the full equipment of the Frankish warriors, the chief weapons among whom were the ambv and the rcsXeTtos a{jLcptoto|xoc. The passage is quoted in full in the orig. Gr. in Arch. 36, p. 49, the substance of which is as follows: The weapon is of a length that may both be used as a javelin or in close fight against a charge of the enemy. The staff of the weapon is covered with iron lamina or hoops, so that but very little wood appears, even down to the spike at the butt end. On either side of the head of this javelin are certain barbs projecting downward close together as far as the shaft. The Frank soldier when engaged with the enemy casts his angon, which if it enters the body cannot be withdrawn in consequence 1 Chart. Th., p. 55622. 2 See Second Part, II, 1, S6eaft-lo. * Cf. Harl. 603, and Psalt. Aureum. 27 of the barbs; neither can it be disengaged if it pierce the shield, for the iron with which the staff is covered prevents the adversary from ridding himself of it by means of his sword. At this moment the Frank rushes forward places his foot on the shaft of the spear as it trails upon the ground, and having deprived his foe of his defence cleaves his skull with his axe or transfixes him with a second spear. This form belongs to No. 5 of Hewitt's classification,- and some such weapon is certainly referred to in B. 1438 where the seamonster was caught with eofor-spreotum heoro- hocyJitum. In the glossaries it appears as onga: aculeus. The angon has given rise to much discussion among archaeologists, the difficulty being to identify the various specimens discovered with the description of the same by Agathias. l Lindenschmidt believed that he had discovered the exact weapon answering to this description at Selzen 2 since then several more have been dug up varying in length from SI 1 /* to 46.8 inches, the Selzen lance attain- ing this length, while the average is 3ft. The effect of the blow depended not so much on the strength of the iron handle, which was only of medium weight and thickness, but on the skillful construction of the point,, which penetrated at once the wooden shield, while the sharp hooks prevented its withdrawal. The point about 3.5 inches long was usually stronger than the iron staff mea- suring .48 to . 64 of an inch in thickness and was always 1 Cf. Lind. Merov. Altert., p. 178, Arch. XXXVI, p. 78, John Y. Akermann, Teut. and Celt. Weapons, Arch. XXXJV, 171 189 r Wylie, Arch. XXXV, p. 48. 2 S. Arch. XXXVI, PI. VIII. 28 quadrilateral. 1 The hooks were usually two in number, only a single angon from Rennecourt possessing four. The staff was always very deep and very long with a [longi- tudinal opening in some cases for the insertion of the wooden shaft to which it was made fast by means of wooden rings. 2 Wylie working independent of Lindenschmidt arrived at the same conclusion identifying the spear head in the Musee de 1'Artillerie at Paris with the angon of Agathias 3 which is 22 inches long with slender stem at first qua- drangular but becoming round near the ferule, the thin iron laminae or sheathing of which have disappeared owing to corrosion. Corresponding to this and identical perhaps with the barbed lances of the Aelfric and Harleian MSS. is the English specimen from Strood in Kent on exhibition in the Brit. Mu. and represented in Collec. Antiqua 4 , which found in a grave with the usual umbo, spear, and knife of Saxon interments, except in length of stem corresponds point for point to the angon of Agathias. It is of iron with quadrilateral head with a length of only 17 1 /* inches, the remainder having been probably broken off, or it may show degeneration. Lindenschmidt disputes the title of angon for this admitting only the continental ones with long stems as true examples. Length of iron shaft to the extent of 3 or 4 ft. is not, however, imperative, and this with 3 or 4 other English examples may be regarded as 1 Of. the specimen from Arcy Lind., fig. 79. 2 Cf. Lind., Tur. Alterttimer d. Heid. Vorz. Ill, Heft IX, Taf. 5. 8 Cf. Arch. XXXV, p. 51, fig. 1. 4 Vol. V, PI. H, fig. 1. - 29 belonging to this rare class of spears. 1 Lindenschmidt endeavers to prove the Roman pilum* the prototype of the Frankish angon, which in turn is derived from the old Etruscan iron spear 3 , against which, however, is the distinct mention by Agathias that the angon was of Frankish origin. 4 But whatever the origin the fact remains that the angon is of extremely rare occurrence about 35 in all having been dug up, and that it is peculiar to the grave- finds of the Ripuarian Franks 5 (the 5Eng. examples excep- ted). A single example only, and that uncertain, having been discovered by Cochet during the whole course of his operations in Normandy. 6 Lindenschmidt and Wylie seeking an explanation for the great scarcity of this weapon in the grave-finds have suggested that it was carried only by tried and experien- ced warriors, which is borne out by the finding of the angon only in the graves of the wealthiest, being usually found together with remains of horses' bits etc. Its great frequence in the MSS. may possibly be due to mere conventional representation, but the fact remains 1 Cf. Invent. Sepul., PL III, fig. 17; Arch. XXXVI, PI. VIII, and Hor. Fer. PI. XXVII, fig. 3. For a representation of this as late as the 15th century s. the illus. from the Chron. of Math. Paris. Strutt A. A., p. 25. 2 Vegetius, De Ke. Mil. I, 20, describes a pllum as ferro sub- tile trigo praefixa. This trilateral head must have been barbed, for he adds in scuto fixa non possunt abscindi. 3 Cf. Mus. Etrus. Greg., PI. XXI, fig. 6. 4 Cf. Lind, Altertumer d. Heid. Vorz. I, Heft XI, Taf. 5, and following text. 5 S. M6m. de la Soc. des Antiq. de Picardie, Vol. X, and Me"m. de la Soc. Philomat. de Verdun, Vol. Ill, p. 199 ff. 6 S. La Norm. Sout., p. 351, and Arch. XXXV, p. 231. - 30 <that it is found in both continental, and Anglo-Saxon MSS. in the hands of at least two thirds of the warriors iheie depicted. Differing from the angon yet long mistaken for the same is the Lancea uncata of Sid. Apoll. 1 Such a lance head was found in the Frankish graves at Douv- rend 2 the prototype of which was the Scythian spear 3 , which although of bronze shows a remarkable identity of form. Although found in the interments of all the Ger- manic branches the form, on the whole, is rare, with wings at side perhaps to prevent the shaft from entering too far, and not to prevent withdrawal as in the case of the angon. 4 England has furnished some extremely rare spe- cimens of this lance, with wings at the side of the stem, one 19 inches long, with a strong and thick head has an ornamented socket and projecting wings, below which are the rivet holes; the iron rivets are further adorned with silver heads. 5 Two other specimens have been found in England, the one from Henley-on-Thames being fully dis- cussed in the Jour, of the Brit. Arch. Ass. 6 The third of these rare lance heads is that with its sides formed on different planes 7 , which in the 1 Lib. IV, Epist. XX. Lanceis uncatis, securibusque missi- billibus dextrae refertae. 2 Arch. XXXV, p. 51, fig. 2. a Arch. XXXV, No. 14, p. 223-231. 4 Cf. Lind., Merov. Alter., figs. 71-74, and Cochet, La Norm. Sout, 2nd ed., p. 283. 5 S. Hor. Fer., PI. XXVII, fig. 6. 6 For. 1882, p. 276. 7 Cf. Hor. Fer. PL XXVII, fig. 5, and Pag. Sax., p. X. For a specimen from Harnham Hill, cf. De Baye, PI. I, fig. 4. 31 case of the specimen given by Kemble has sunk grooves on alternate sides of the blade in order to give it a rotary motion when thrown. It bears a close resemblance to the assagaye, and calls to mind the frequent A.-S. ex- pression gares flylit, which refer to the throwing of such a spear. This reminds one also of the passage in the Walt, lied (V. 1289) sed illam (hastam) turbine terribilem tanto et stridore volantem. At Fairford in Gloucestershire a very remarkable spear head was found shaped like a bayonet 1 , four sided and measuring 16 */2 inches in length by two in its widest breadth, which corresponds more nearly even than the angon to the description of Thorolf s famous spear Bryuft- varar in the Egilsage, which had ferrum duas ulnas longum, in mucrone quattuor acie habentem, desinebat. This shows also points of resemblance to the Egyptian spears in Sir Gardner Wilkinson's work on the Ancient Egyptians*. 2 2. The Sword. Unlike the spear the sword was unknown to the rude civilization of the Stone Age, where weapons of war served also for the chase, and workmen's tools were as yet not entirely differentiated from implements of war. Appearing first in the Bronze Age the evolution of the sword out of the long knife of the Stone Age was closely connected with the knowledge of the working of metals, and was the first weapon designed and used exclusively for the purpose of war. With the sword came also the 1 Fair. Graves, PI. X, fig. 2. 2 Vol. I, 2nd ed., p. 353. 32 need for protecting the body at close range, and in this necessity protective armour had its origin. The bronze sword used for thrusting, which has been discovered in all parts of Europe inhabited by the Celtic tribes, is never found in Teutonic interments. The Teutons on their first appearance in Europe were in possession of iron, and the long blunt iron swords for cutting not thrusting (s. Tacitus VI) offer a striking contrast to the short sharp bronze swords of the Roman legions. Accor- ding to Tacitus, however, it was a rare weapon, and even in the Salic law is ' not mentioned as part of a warrior's necessary equipment. During the Merovingian period the sword became more general, but even at the time of the Carolingians the infantry were not required to carry swords 1 , these being assigned only to the cavalry. 2 Comparing these capitularies with the statements of Greg, of Tours and Agathias (s. spear p. 19 ff.) both of whom assign the sword to the ordinary Frankish soldier, it will be seen how contradictory the evidence of the historians often is. Notwithstanding their statements it is safe to conclude both from the laws and the grave-finds that the sword together with the helmet and coat of mail continued 1 Capit. II from year 813, No. IX, ed. Baluze, p. 508. De hoste pergendi. . . . Et ipse Comes praevideat quomodo sint parati, id est, lanceam, scutum, aut arcum, cum duabus cordis, et sagittis duo- decim. Et Episcopi, Comites, Ablates, hos homines qui hoc beneprae- videant, habeant loricas ml galeas et (ad) temporalem hostem, id est aestivo tempore. 2 Cf. the Encyclic, Capit. of 806 (Pertz III, 145), ita ut unus quisque caballarius habeat scutum, et lanceam, et spatham, et semi- spatam, arcum et pharetras cum sagittis, et in carris vestris utensilia diversi generis. 33 to be up to a late period the sign of rank both among Frankish and Anglo-Saxon warriors. An examination of the laws of Canute concerning Heriot 1 brings out the interesting fact that no one under the rank of thane had a sword to pay, because such was not a weapon suitable to his degree. The earls, however, were compelled to render 8 horses, 4 helmets, 4 coats of mail, 8 spears, 8 shields, and 4 swords, the king's thanes 2 swords etc., while the ordinary thane was required only to provide his own sword, horse, and equipment. Thus all who had swords had also horses to render and according to Kemble 2 the number of horses and weapons may be equivalent to the number of men, which each person was expected to bring into the field. Thus the requirement from the earl must have been to bring 4 horsemen equipped with sword, spear, shield, helmet, and coat of mail: and also 4 footmen armed with spear and shield. This corresponds exactly with the Capit. of the year 806 just mentioned, which assigns the broadsword only to horse- men, and receives confirmation from the game laws of Canute 3 , where only the head forester is hi possession of 1 A. L. ed. Thorpe, p. 177, law 72, or Ges. Lieberm. II, law 71, p. 356 ff. Laws of King Canute, Gesetze II, De Hereotis. And beon fa heregeata svd hit m&dli sy. I. Eorles svd f&r-to gebyrige feet syndon edhta hors, feower gesadelode 7 feower ungesadelode, 7 feower helmas, 7 feower byrnan, 7 ehta spera, 7 eall svd feala scylda, 7 feower swurd, 7 twa hund mancus goldes. II. And syffan cyninges fege- nes fe him nyhste syndon feower hors, twa gesadelode 7 twa un- gesadelode, 7 twa swurd, 7 feower spera 7 sva feala scylda, 7 helm, 7 byrnan, 7 fiftig mancus goldes. III. And medemra fegna hors 7 his ger&dlan 7 his wxpn, ofpe his heals-fang on West-Sexan. 7 on Myrcan twd pund 7 on East-Englan twd pund. 2 Hor. Fer., p. 203. 3 A. L. VI, VII, and VIII, p. 183. Keller, The Anglo-Saxon Weapon Names. 3 34 a sword. 1 Kemble adds furthermore that the swords found in the Anglo-Saxon, Norman, and German graves were broad swords which could be wielded only by horsemen. In the Anglo-Saxon wills mention of valuable swords as part of the Heriot given to the, royal lord on the death of a warrior occurs several times; but rarely in any will were more than two left except by a king or king's son, and in every instance they are regarded as costly gifts. 2 Ae6elstan left in his will two silver hilted swords, the one by Wulfric wrought, the other owned by Ulfcytil, together with a golden sword belt and eight other costly swords, to various relatives and retainers, the largest number of valuable swords left in any will. From a sentence in this will and from numerous passages in Beowulf and other poems 3 it is evident that famous smiths and their work were held in great esteem and veneration among the Anglo-Saxons as well as among the Scandinavians, and Continental Germans, while the passing on of famous swords from father to son, or in the same family, was a well known custom. Striking, how- ever, is the almost total absence of proper names for swords in the Anglo-Saxon literature, when contrasted with the vast number in the literature of Germany and Scandi- navia 4 , 57 sword names alone being extant in Old Norse, not including the names for helmets, axes, hammers, arrows, spears, shields, war-banners, etc., which amount to several hundred, while in Anglo-Saxon three or four only are 1 Cf. also B. 1035. Cf. Chart. Th., p. 500, 505, 557, 596, and will of Aedelst. 577. 8 B. 1681, 1663, 795 etc. 4 Cf. B. Kahle, Altwestnordische Namenstudien, Idg. Forsch., Bd. XIV., p. 204. 35 to be found iu the whole range of the literature. Nsegling the sword of Beowulf (B. 2680), Hrunting (B. 1457, 1659) Hunferft's sword, perhaps Hun-Ldfing 1 , and the sword Mimming in the Waldere Fragments (I 3 ). The Kenningar are on the other hand frequent, so that the peculiar lack of proper names for weapons among a people resembling so nearly in ideas and customs their kindred on the con- tinent among whom the naming of weapons was universal is hard to account for, especially as Norse or rather Danish sword names must have been known in England. From the Anglo-Saxon glossaries it is evident that the general term sweord corresponds to the Roman word spafha, the large two-edged broadsword, but is also employed to translate the word framea. For the earlier meaning of framea 'spear', and the later one c sword 5 consult the ar- ticle by Mtillenhoff 2 , where it is clearly shown that the meaning of spear was original, and retained until the 3 rd century, where the last record of its use as spear occurs by the Jurist Ulpian. 3 The later meaning of sword be- longs to the Christian literature, and from the Biblical literature 4 was adopted by Greg, of Tours, Isidor. 5 , and in the Lat. of the Middle Ages is used almost exclusively with the meaning sword. Mece, sweord, secg, and heoru are synonymous terms, the two last being poetical words. 1 S. Beit. XII, 32, and Zachers Zts. Ill, p. 396. 2 Anz. f. d. A. VII, p. 19-164/ 3 Dig. 43, 16, 3, 2. Arma sunt omnia tela, hoc est et fustes et lapides non solum gladii, hastae, frameae (id est romphaeae). Romphaea = a powerful spear. 4 Of. Psalms 97; 1613; 2121; 343 in the Vulgata where framea is used, in every other instance gladius. 6 laid. Orig. 18 c. 63. Framea vero gladius ex utraque parte acutus quod vulgo spatham vocant. 3* 36 Bil meaning Word' is also found only in poetry being especially frequent in Beowulf, but in the glosses is used to translate falcastrum 'scythe'. In Beowulf the sword plays a prominent part, the poetical Kenningar as well as the regular terms for sword being frequent. Thus it is variously designated as leoma the flashing light-beam (1570), beado-leoma the battle-light (1523), Irond the fire-brand (1454), fela laf the leavings of files (1032), laf a remnant, a precious heirloom (2628, 795, 1488 etc.), Mlde-segese or egese the battle-saw, the terror of the battle (3154), m%gen-fultum(a) the mighty help (B. 1455), and gudwine the battle-friend (2735). The sword is named, moreover, ecg from its edge (2506, 2578 etc.), ord from mucro, the point (1549, 556), while bit and mece next to sweord are the most frequently recurring terms for the great two-edged sword of the heroes. Three swords wrought by the giants are mentioned: the great sword in Grendel's abode (1558), Wiglafs sword (2616), and that of Eofor (2979). A sword blade of styl is once mentioned in Beowulf (1533), but these blades were usually of iron (B. 2778) with richly adorned sword hilts of costly metal and set with precious stones cf. B. (2700) where the sword is fah and f%ted adorned with golden plates, (2192) the golde gegyrede; nces mid Geatum fa sine- maddum selra on sweordes had. This last description recalls the golden hilted swords of the Atlaquifca (stanz. 7). sjau eigom salhus. sverf full ero hverjo ero feira Tifylt or golle. Moreover the description of Grendel's sword hilt (B. 1694) is distinctly Scandinavian, the wreoden-Mt and tvyrm-fah 37 being a very frequent Scandinavian ornamentation 1 , while the runic inscription is also characteristic. 2 Another reference to a sword bunden golde occurs in B. 1. 1900, the icunden-tncel ivrcettum gebunden represents the hilt as adorned with etching of some description, and set with jewels as also the maddum sweord (1023). Corre- sponding to these descriptions and also to the hyrsted stveord adorned with gold (672) of Beowulf are such passages as a gold gerised on gwnan sweorde (Gn. Ex. 126), the scir mseled sivyrd (Jud. 230),. a gold Mted sword (Ridls. 56 u ), and the several costly swords referred to in the wills, many having hilts either of gold or silver. At first glance the frequency of the sword at this period, to be inferred from Beowulf and other poems, would seem to offer a direct contradiction to the laws, wills, MSS., and grave-finds, which prove conclusively that it is the weapon only of warriors of wealth and rank. A closer examination shows, however, that in the poems the costly swords mentioned, and the rich gifts of jewelled swords are always either the property of heroes, or the gifts of kings to great warriors. The single exception occurs in B. (1900), where the gift of a valuable sword to the boatswain by Beowulf gives him such an exalted position among his fellows that it proves the rarity of such a possession among those of his class. An absence of the sword in the equipment of the hall thanes occurs at 1. 1242, which may be accidental or a true statement of the case: 1 On Dannenberger Bracteaten No. 3 and 4, and the Golden Horn of Gallehus. S. Dietr. Germ. X, p. 278 ff. * Cf. Helgaquijia 9. 38 Setton him to heafdon hilde-randas, bord-ivudu leorhtan; peer on bence wees ofer adelinge yd-gesesene heado-steapa helm, hringed byrne frec-wudu firymlic. In an exactly parallel case Beowulf preparing himself for the night is described as giving his sword of rare worth to a servant to care for (671), in this instance the sword replaces the spear of the warriors mentioned in the passage previously quoted. The testimony of the MSS. as stated in the general sketch is to be used with great discrimination owing to the conventionality of representation at the early period. One fact is, however, perfectly clear, namely that the sword without cross-piece is never represented, pointing to the fact that at the time of the illuminations of the MSS. (in most cases later than the 9 th cent.) the primitive iron sword of the grave-finds without cross-piece had com- pletely disappeared. The mountings of swords in the MSS. are usually colored yellow implying probably a sur- face of gold either from thin plates of this metal or from gilding. With reference to the MSS. in particular Harleian 603 shows comparatively few swords, the angon and regular spear by far predominating over all other weapons. Where, moreover, it does occur it is plainly the property of kings, leaders, or picked warriors and has often a gold adorned hilt. 1 At pages 13, 29, 33, 65 and 67 occur represen- tations of such, and at 69 two horsemen are represented armed with both angon and sword, the only example in this entire MS. of their being carried together. Comparison of the various illuminations leads then to the result that 1 Of. illus. to the IX. Psalm and to the XIII. opp. p. 8, where 4 swords are found. 39 the angon or spear, and shield are the property of the ordinary warrior and not the sword. In Aelfric's Heptateuch (Cott. Claud. B. IV) swords are much more frequent than in the Harleian MS., in many cases they seem to have taken the place of the angon or spear 1 , and resemble the great broad swords recovered from the graves 2 with cross-piece and gilded hilt. The Psalter. Aureum 3 represents the ordinary soldier with spear and round shield, the leaders usually with the sword. An examination of the Psalter Illus. in the early Middle Ages 4 gives the same results as the Psalter. Aureum. The great Psalter of Boulogne 5 , probably by an Anglo- Saxon artist between 989 and 1008, has a precise duplicate in many parts, in Cott. Tib. C. VI. Here are represented the achievements of David ; No. 2, the fight with Goliath, shows the latter in full armour with sword, shield, spear, and a kind of body armour; No. 3 gives a representation of a sword with cross-piece and clover-leaf handle. PI. 39 represents foot soldiers armed with the usual round shield, angon or spear, but also with sword. 6 The remaining examples are from the Cott. Psalter now in Utrecht (fol. 91 V) showing a king with sword and scepter. 7 1 C'f. p. 120, 122, 128, 151 etc. a Of. p. 22, 25, 40 and 104. 3 Eahn, Taf. XV, X und IX. 4 Anton Springer, Taf. II, III, IV. 5 J. 0. Westwood, PL XXXVIII. 6 Cf. Harl. 603, p. 69. 7 Westwood, PL XXIX, and PL XXXV, from the Salisbury Psalter. 40 In Strutt 1 the horsemen of the 8 th century appear with- out either sword or shield, only the spear, but from the same century is a representation of a foot soldier with a sword and sword belt. 2 Turning to another, which, together with the laws, forms the most reliable source of information, the graves their contents but serve to confirm previous statements. The swords recovered from the graves are of two kinds: 1. the two-edged sword proper or long sword (Lat. spatha, gladius), 3 ft. long with a somewhat rounded point, perfectly flat, the earlier ones without, the later ones with a small guard or cross-piece, and a handle of ivory, horn, wood or some other perishable material. 2. The solid one- edged blade, the scrama-seax with sharp point, rarely found in England, but frequent on the Continent. The best specimen of this class is the well known Thames Knife in- scribed with runes which is preserved in the British Museum. The oldest swords found in the graves consist of a rusted iron blade from 2 1 /* to 3 ft. long, the width near handle being about 2*/2 inches, without cross-piece, double- edged, and tapering slightly toward the point, with a strig 4*/2 inches long. They are uniformally without pommel, the termination being merely a slight transverse projection from the iron strig for the purpose of securing the wood, which completed the handle. 3 In the case of a sword recovered at Strood in Kent 4 1 D. and Hab. of the People of Eng., Vol. I, PI. XIII. * Id., for swords from 9* and 10^ centuries cf. PI. XXIX, No. 17, and PI. XIX. 3 For examples of this primitive type see Sax. Obseq., PI. XXXIV, Hor. Fer., PI. XXVI, figs. 1 and 2. 4 For similar specimens cf. Invent. Sepul., PI. XIV, and Hor. Fer. XXVI, figs. 1 and 3. 41 the remains of a scabbard is oxydized on to the blade, the interior being of wood, portions of which still remain together with a part of the outer covering, which resembles shagreen. 1 For the relative proportion between the number of swords and spears found, s. p. 25, from which the re- lative scarcity of the sword becomes at once apparent, but 2 having been recovered from all Derbyshire, 15 from 750 Kentish graves, and from 1010 graves examined by Cochet in Normandy, but 8 swords were recovered, being found only in the most richly provided graves. In the Later Iron Period No. 1 developed a cross- piece, two very early specimens from Gilton and Coombe 2 showing the process of evolution, for here the cross-piece has projected but little beyond the edges of the blade. Eventually the guard became a very prominent feature of the Scandinavian sword. 3 Proving beyond question that the type with well developed cross-piece belonged to the period in which the pagan practice of interring weapons with the dead had been abandoned, is the fact that genuine examples of this type found in England and in countries early christianized have, in most cases, been either dredged from the beds of rivers, or turned up among old foundations, though in districts where paganism held longer sway they have also been obtained from graves. 4 The handles of later swords consisted of grip (hilt, hceft), pommel, and cross-piece, the grip, being as in the 1 For continental specimens s. Lind., Das Museum in Mainz, PI. XII, 3, 6, 7; Cochet, La Norm. Sout., PI. VII, fig. 1. 2 Pag. Sax., PI. XXIV. 3 S. Worsaae's Afbildninger n. 383. 4 S. Pag. Sax., p. 47, and Hewitt, Ancient Arms and Armour, p. 31-37. 42 case of the earlier specimens, commonly formed of wood, portions of which (identified as pine) have been dug up adhering to the strig. This cross-bar was usually straight, but it sometimes curved toward the blade in the manner characteristic of the Danish cross-piece. 1 These cross-pieces of metal, as well as the pommel, were often richly deco- rated and gilded, the form of the latter being either trefoil, cinquefoil hemispherical, rounded, or triangular, examples of each being found in one or the other of the MSS. mentioned above. Compare furthermore the nume- rous passages, cited at p. 36 ff. from Beowulf and other Anglo-Saxon poems, referring to ornamental hilts, which are, however, extremely rare in the grave-finds four or five only having been recovered from A.-S. interments, owing in all probability to the fact that such costly weapons were retained as heir-looms in the family of the deceased warrior and not buried with him. Later disturbance of the graves for the sake of their contents may also have contributed to bring about this scarcity of sword-finds. A rare specimen of such a hilt comes from Coombe in E. Kent 2 found with another sword in a richly provided grave. This handle which is well adapted for a firm grasp is adorned with two metal fillets of bronze gilt at the pommel and cross-piece (cf. the silver hilted sword of Aedelstan), the whole of which is ornamented with a characteristic plaited pattern, and possesses a curious in- dented ornament on the pommel. 1 8. specimen in Brit. Mu., also MSS. Cott. Tib. c. VI, fol. 9, and Cleop. C. VIII, the sword from the river Witham, Hor. Fer., PL XXVI, fig. 5, Arch. Jour. Vol. VI, p. 75, and Hewitt's Arms and Armour, PL IV, figs. 9, 10, 11, taken from Bahr's Livonian Col- lection. 8 Pag. Sax., PL XXIV, or Collec. Antiq. II, PL XXX VIII, fig. 1. 43 A second one from Gilton 1 of silver gilt is remark- able for the metal loop and movable ring. This perhaps served for the appendage of a charm or talisman, possibly for one of the large crystal beads found only in the graves of men (cf. B. 672 Tiyrsted sweord). Number three is a sword pommel, engraved with runes, from Ash 2 , which corresponds to the gold-hilted rune- engraved sword described in Beowulf (1695). Two more, one from the Isle of Wight and a second from Reading 3 together with a beautiful hilt of soft brown wood in the British Museum with mountings of gold filagree of the usual winding A.-S. pattern, and set with garnets, complete the list of discoveries in the graves of fine spe- cimens of the gold-smith's art. Danish or rather Scandinavian swords have been discovered surrounded with chains of gold, or wound with fine iron or gold wire 4 with which may be compared B. (1564) fetel-hilt . . . kring mxl gebrzegd, or covered with plates of gold and silver as in Beowulf (1694). Also from the latest pagan period come specimens with runic inscriptions let into the blade such as on king Hacon's sword Kuernbitr. 5 For years it has been surmised that these swords, owing to their obtuse point, were not used for the thrust. Sidonius Apollinaris, however, disposes of this question with the words: Alii habetatorum caede gladiorum later a 1 Arch. XXX, p. 132, or Pag. Sax., PI. XXIV. 2 Pag. Sax., PI. XXIV, fig. 3. 3 S. De Baye, p. 19, fig. 2. 4 S. Montelius, Die Kultur Schwedens in vorchristlicher Zeit, figs. 133, 134, 164. 8 Cf. Worsaae's Afbildninger n. 383. 44 dentata pernumerant. Alii caesim atque punctim fora mi- natos circulos loricarum metiuntur. 1 Number 2 the Scrama seax, the single- edged long knife or short sword, is found in many graves in France and Germany, but is of extremely rare occurrence in England, being found only in the graves at Ozingell in Kent, and appears but seldom in the MSS. or in the poems. In the glosses the word is frequently used to translate the Lat. culter, but in the compounds pecih-seax = Lat. semispatha, and hype -seax = lytel 'sweord, while in prose it refers in general to the small knives found in almost every grave of both sex both in England, France, and Germany. In the poetry on the other hand it refers to the short sword or Lat. machaera. 2 These sword knives are probably the cultri validi (quos vulgo scrama saxos vocant) of Greg, of Tours 3 who describes them as incised or grooved. Worthy of notice in this connection also is the battle-call of Hengist to his followers on arriv- ing in England Eu Saxones nimid cure Saxes!* and of Widukind 5 erat autem illis diebus Saxonibus longorum cictellorum usus, quibus usque hodie Attglii utuntur, morem gentis antiquae sectantes. An excellent example from the cemetary at Ozingell 6 16 inches long, of iron, and provided with a cross-piece, corresponds point for point with the illustrated A.-S. Psalter 1 Lib. in, Ep. 3. 2 Cf. B. 1545 for the seax used by GrendePs mother, also Cri. 1141, and Ra. 766. 3 Lib. IV. c. 46, VHI, 29. 4 Nennius, c. 46 p. 37. Lib. I, c. 6. Hewitt, PI. IX, fig. 1. 45 of the Due de Berri in the Paris library 1 where the spear- man's adversary appears to be employing such an instrument as that from the Kentish grave. The handles were pro- bably of wood, and the Thames knife is inscribed with runes, and the name of the soldier who bore it. An in- teresting discovery at Kingston Down, Kent was a short sword or dagger 10 inches long with a silver pommel neatly set with oblong squares of calcareous paste. 2 Staef-sweord. The staff-sword, known to the ancient Egyptians and Greeks, was among the Romans identical with the sparum, the peasants' weapon, which combined a broad blade with a wooden staff. 3 This curious weapon is also met with in Merovingian and Carolingian graves 4 and is found recorded in A.-S. Glossaries, though no trace of such has been discovered in the grave finds. In the Middle Ages this weapon received in German the name Gldfe from Fr. glaive and was applied to the lance of the knights. The Fr. guisarme (gisarme) refers also to a kind of Glafe, or staff-sword. This weapon is also wide spread among non-European peoples being known to the Japanese and Chinese 5 , and to certain African tribes. 1 Hewitt, p. 51, No. 8. 2 Invent. Sepul., p. 55 and for the usual seax Collec. Antiq. II, Pl.LVIII, Invent. Sepul., PI. XV, and Hor. Fer., PI. XXVI, fig. 6. 3 S. Jahns Trutzwaffen, p. 260 and Taf. XXVIII, figs. 6, 7, 8, and 9. 4 The same fig. 11. 5 Cf. Jahns, p. 174 and 262, also H. B. Meyer, Seltene Waffen aus Asien, Afrika und Amerika im konig. Ethnogr. Mus. zu Dresden. Leipzig 1885. 46 Possibly the change in meaning of framea 'spear' to Word 5 is to be connected with this weapon half spear, half sword, although it is by no means certain. The Sheath. The sword -sheath was usually of wood covered with leather, and sometimes mounted in bronze. 1 In the British Museum is a sword found at Battle Edge, Oxfordshire, which retains the bronze chape and locket of its scabbard. These were sometimes gilded and even of gold. Occasio- nally the sheaths where adorned with a winding or snake pattern so characteristic of the period, and one bronze chape inlaid with figures of animals in gilt has been discovered. 2 For a Derbyshire example constructed of thin wood, overlaid with leather, and covered with a pattern of alternate fillets and lozenges, see the article by Bateman.. 3 The curious type of sword scabbard entirely of bronze is in all probability of northern manufacture, such having been found in parts of Scandinavia, and is not of Anglo- Saxon make. 4 Frequently the scabbard is oxydized on to the blade of the sword as in the specimen from Strood, it being impossible to separate the one from the other. The Sword Belt. Among the Romans the cingulum mttitiae, a leather girdle worn about the hips, and used solely to support the 1 For bronze chapes cf. Sax. Obseq., PI. XXXIV, and Fair. Graves, PI. Ill, fig. 3, also Lind., Merov. Altertiimer, fig. 122. 2 S. Arch. 38, p. 84, or Hor. Fer., PL XXVI, fig. 3. 8 Arch, jour., Vol. VII. 4 For the specimen from Yorkshire s. Hewitt, p. 44, and cf. Arch. jour. X, p. 259. 47 sword, was sharply distinguished from the cingulum for girding the tunic. Among the German tribes on the contrary the two fell together, and the cingulum militiae was no longer sword belt alone, but supported the clothing, served as pocket etc. Originally the sweord-fetel was a leather strap, more or less ornamented, attached directly to the sheath, girt about the waist, and fastened with a buckle; the buckles and tongues being frequently found in the graves of the Merovingian period. These are gene- rally of bronze, sometimes of copper, and the metal is not infrequently gilded, embossed, or enamelled, some being set with garnets and other stones. 1 Often these belts were richly adorned, accounts of golden sword belts being not infrequent, cf. Procop. 2 for an account of such among the booty, Greg, of Tours 3 who describes a bdltheum magnum ex auro lapidibusque preciosis ornatum, Eginhart in his Epitome of the Hist, of France, also writes et gladio semper accinctus, cujus capulus ac baltheus aut aureus aut argenteus erat> and Wm. of Malmesbury, who gives an account of the sword belt given by Alfred to his son Aedelstan as follows: quern etiam praemature militem fecerat, donatum chlamy de coccinea gemmato baltheo, ense Saxonico cum vagina aurea. The belt is also occasionally worn across the body suspended from the right shoulder as in the Cott. MS. Tiber. C. VI, fol. 9. 4 The Anglo-Saxon wills mention some richly adorned A.-S. sword belts; thus in Chart. Th. 557 ]>ses swurdes 1 Pag. Sax., PL XXVIII, XXIX, and XXXIX, fig. 1. 2 Bell. Vand. lib. II, c. 9. 3 Lib. X, c. 21. 4 Cf. also Strutt, D. u. Hab. of the People of England, PL XXIX, No. 17. 48 mid fam sylfrenan Mte was attached to fone gtjldenan fetils; in the will of Aederic 1 his sword mid fetele is part of the Heriot] also mention is made of a gyldenan fetels. 2 In the 13 th century the sword sheath was attached not directly to the belt, but was suspended by means of small leather straps and rings, so that it could easily be detached without removing the belt itself. This enabled the warrior further to carry his sword in his hand if so desired. This then was the origin of the cingulum militaris or baltJieus militaris, which was known in England as the balderich, the encircling with which attended the ceremony of knighting in the days of Chivalry. The Bow and Arrow. Notwithstanding the fact that the bow and arrow was the weapon of primitive man, and known to every nation, the terms for arrow have had an individual deve- lopment in the various branches of the European division of the family of languages and are not descended from one Idg. ground form. The Germanic word for bow is N. Europ. taking its name from the form of the same, the Greeks, on the other hand, deriving their name TOOV c yew' from the material of which the bow was made. As the spear so also was the bow used both for war and the chase, and certainly served in this double capa- city among the Germanic tribes, although the statement is frequently made that the bow was not employed among > Chart. Th. 51627. * Chart. Th. 55812, and s. San Marte, p. 139. 49 them as a weapon of war. In answer to this cf. Caesar 1 for mention of arrows among the Gauls; Procop. 2 and Aga- thias 3 for mention of the non-carrying of bows among the Franks in a certain expedition, which proves conclusively, however, that they had been or were at the time common among the soldiery. For reference to the use of bows among the Alemannen and Goths cf. Ammian Marc. 4 and Jordanes 5 , while Greg, of Tours 6 describes the Frankish troops as armed with swords and arrows. Furthermore on the Tiberian Cameo of the Paris library the bow is represented among the weapons of the conquered Germans, as also on the Antonine Column. Turning to the laws the Lex Salica 7 contains the amount of wergeld to be paid for the injury of the shooting finger, which corresponds to the English law of Aedelbirht 8 and of Alfred. In the Capit. of Charlemagne from the year 813 9 the bow with two cords and twelve arrows is ordered as part of the equipment of every Frankish foot soldier, while bows with arrows and quivers are ordered like- wise for the cavalry in the Epist. from the year 784. 10 The 1 Sagittariosque omnes, quorum erat permagnus numerus in Gallia, conquiri jubet Vercingetorix. Bell. Gall. VII, 31. 2 B. Got. II, 25. 8 II, 5, s. under spear. 4 XIV, 10. 5 De re Get. c. 5. 6 V, 20; .II, 37. For further references to M. Lat. authors s. San Marte, Waffenkunde, p. 179 ff. 7 Si secundum digitum, quo sagittatur, excusserit, sol. XXXV culpdbilis judicitur. Lex. Sal. XXXI, 6, ed. Baluze p. 301. 8 Gif man scyte-finger of-slseM VIIII still, gebete. S. Part. II, p. . . under scyte. 9 No. IX, ed. Baluze, p. 508. 10 Epistol. Caroli M. ad. Fulradum Abbatem St. Dyoniei. Keller, The Anglo-Saxon Weapon Names. 4 50 arrow strange to say is not mentioned in the laws of Canute. The Beowulf, however, and other poems give abundant evidence of the use of bow and arrow as wea- pon of war among the Anglo-Saxons long before the Norman Conquest. For instance the lines in Beowulf be- ginning 3114 Nu sceal gled fretan wigena strengel, fone-fe oft gebad isern scure, fonne strzela storm, strengum gebseded, scoc ofer scild-weall, sceft nytte heold, feder-gearwum fus flane futt-eode, leaves no room for doubt as to their use in battle, or compare 1. 1433 where mention of flan-bogan occurs, together with the here-strxl, again at 1744, while at 2437 appears the form horn-logan, which Schulz (Hof. Leben II, 17) describes as c a wooden bow covered with a layer of horn here ticker there thinner in order to give it greater strength for casting the arrow 5 . The Jiorn-bogan of the Anglo-Saxons may, however, be named from the curved ends of the bows in comparison to straight ends, horn weapons not otherwise occurring among this people (cf. in this connection horns of a saddle). In other poems occur such expressions as flams flyU (By. 71), flan-geweorc (Cri. 613), draca ne fleoged (Fins. 3) etc. with several similar expressions from the Judith, Elene, Exodus and others. At the battle of Hastings, moreover, arrows were employed on the English side, though few in number 1 , while the battle was won by the Normans through their superior archery. 2 1 S. Bay. Tap., where a single archer only is represented on the Eng. side. Also copied in Jahns Trutzwaff., Taf. XXXIX, fig. 4. 3 Cf. KOhler, Entw. d. Kriegsw. Bd. I, p. 1 ff. 51 Poisoned arrows were known to the Anglo-Saxons as to all Idg. peoples from the earliest period 1 , cf. An. (1331) Laetafr gares ord earh attre gemsd in gedufan in fxges ferd!, and in reference to the sword Hrunting in B. 1459 ecg was iren ater-tanum fah showing the use of poisoned weapons. Important evidence, for the use of bow and arrow, for other than hunting purposes, later than the 8 th cent., is offered by the representations of such in the MSS., when carried by warriors. Cf. Cott. MS., Cleop. C. VIII, Claud. B. IV, Tiberius C. VI all in British Museum, the Prudentius MS. of the Tenison library, and the illus. of the 24 th Ps. representing a bowman and a quiver for arrows in the centre (Anton Springer, Die Psalt.-Illus im fruh. M.-A., Tafel H und IV), and the VII Psalm of Harleian 603. Cf. also the ivory figures of two archers forming part of the cover decoration of the prayer book of Charles le Chauve, each holding a leash of barbed arrows and the figure of a warrior from the Stuttgart Psalter 2 provided with coat of mail, helmet, and bow. Owing to the decaying of the wood no trace of bows have been found in the graves with the exception of eight preserved in good condition in the tree coffins near Ober- flacht, and some few found in the moors. Although these graves date from a slightly later period, the contents 1 Cf. Rigveda VI, 75, 15, where two kinds of arrows are dis- tinguished, bronze and those smeared with poison. Pliny, Nat. Hist. XXVI, 76, 27, mentions poisoned hunting arrows. The Lex Bajuvariorum, Tit. Ill, ? si quis cum toxicata sigitta alicui sanguinam fuderit cum sol. XII componaf, and the Lex Salica XIX, e si quis alterum cum sagitta toxicata percutere voluerit, solidis LXII cul- pabilis judicetur'. 2 Weifi, Kostumkunde II, fig. 268. 4* 52 agree so exactly with those of the Merovingian period that the long bows here preserved may be regarded as typical for the German peoples of the continent and probably for the Anglo-Saxons. These bows were of yew, seven feet long, curving very slightly, strongest in the middle, and tapering gradually to the ends where the bow string was made fast. 1 The finds from the Nydam moor were not so uniform, the bows varying in size from four to eight feet, and either quite plain or ornamented, they had sharp metal points at the corners and dated approximately from the third cent., Roman coins pointing to some such date having been discovered with them. These bows are often made from one piece of wood, others are of several pieces, but in every instance heavier and stouter toward the centre. The arrows discovered with the afore-mentioned bows (three for each) were completely dried out as might be expected. The shafts were about 2 ft. long, somewhat stronger at the top than at the bottom, and with kitts for the feathering. Remarkable is the fact that the metal arrow points had completely disappeared, although the small clamps used to attach them to the shaft were still present, and only a brownish red coloring was seen where the points should have been. Some of these arrows attained a length of 3 1 /* ft., while a quiver found with them about 2 ft. long points to much smaller arrows. The arrow heads may be divided into 3 classes: 1. Round and smooth with a spike which was driven into the wood of shaft. 2. Leaf shaped with a cusp to fit over the shaft. 3. Those with barbed hooks. 2 1 Cf. Lind., Merov. Altertumer, fig. 46. 2 For other divisions s. Lind., p. 154. 53 Number 1 prevailed among the Romans, while 2 and 3 are the prevailing forms found in German graves, which make it extremely difficult to distinguish between these and the light spear heads (darod). 1 Although John Y. Akermann denies the existence of arrows among the Anglo-Saxons for the purpose of war 2 , and identifies all heads resembling arrow points as belonging to a light spear, the fact remains nevertheless that certain dis- coveries of arrow points, although in very few instances authentic, have been made. Thus for instance in Invent. Sepulchrale a find of arrow heads containing both the barbed and triangular forms, the latter approaching some- what the bolt shape, from Chessel in Kent is described. Nenia Brit. 3 contains an iron arrow head from Lancashire, while Bateman 4 gives an account of an arrow head dis- covered in Derbyshire. Their extreme rarity may be due in part not to their scarcity among the Anglo-Saxons but to their rapid decomposition and, on account of small size, entire disintegration in a moist soil. The arrows were carried in a quiver, which was probably slung over the shoulder after the manner re- presented in fig. 114 of Montelius (Urkultur Schwedens). The highest pitch of excellence in archery was attained in England under Norman rule, as was demonstrated by the supremacy of English archers in the hundred years' war with France, a skilled archer being able to shoot 600 yards. 1 Of. Lind., figs. 47 and 48, Cocbet, La Norm. Sout., PI. XV, fig. 9. Arch. 30, p. 171. 3 PI. XIX, fig. 7. * Ten Years' Diggings, p. 126. 54 Owing to this great skill with the bow archers were retained as regular troops in England until 1627, and to this day archery has remained a favorite sport of the English nobility. For further development in Middle Ages cf. Dillon. 1 Arcubalista. The arcubalista, OE. arbaleste, was introduced into England from France after 1000. It was known among the Chinese, however, as early as 1200 B. C., appeared later among the Greeks, and was known to the Romans in the 4 th cent. A. D. under the name arcubalista or bow hurling machine from Lat. arcus and Gr. paXXstv. Cf. the column from a Roman grave at Polignac sur Loir, in the museum at Puy, for a Roman cross-bow and quiver 2 , and also Veg. 3 Fustibalos arcuballistas et fundas describere super- $uum puto, quae pracsens usus agnoscit pointing to general use of same at this period. Animian. Marc. 4 and Jor- danes 5 ascribe the carrying of cross-bows to the Goths, and then follows silence until the 10 th cent, when it again appears in an MS. of Louis IV. (937), and toward the end of the cent, in a bible from St. Germaine now in the Nat. Lib. at Paris. 6 It was in use during the Crusades, and during the 12 th cent, appears to have come into general use again. For the illustrations from the Chron. of 1 Arch. Tackle in the Middle Ages. 2 Jahns, Trutzwaff., Taf. XL, fig. 9. 3 E. R. M. II, 15 and IV, 22. * XXII, 8. 8 De re Get. c. 5. 6 S. Jahne, Trutzwaff., Taf. XL, fig. 11. 55 Math. Paris, in the 13 th cent., showing numerous cross- bows, cf. Strutt. 1 The cross-bow consisted of a very strong bow, ori- ginally of wood, afterwards made of steel or iron, fastened in the centre to a wooden shaft. It possessed in addition a lever, the aim of the whole being to increase the force of the shot, and was known as an arbalestre with crows (footle ver). In the 12 th and 13 th centuries this cross-bow was strung with the hand, and the artificial means of spanning came first in the 14 th cent. 2 The projectiles used were bolts catapulta so heavy that only a few could be carried upon the battle field. These were carried in a quiver, and both quiver and cross-bow were carried slung over the shoulder by means of a strap. The cross-bow was not so true as the bow, and the bolts were shorter and less accurately made than the arrows, but when they struck they penetrated every thing. Cf. Lampr. Alex. 2262 die Armborst unde di phile tdten ime ml grosen schaden. At the most eight shots only to the minute were possible, and furthermore the thick strings when once dampened could not be used as was the case with the Genoese bowmen at Crecy. On the other hand in sieges where the bolts could be supplied promptly without the necessity of carrying, and some one was near to help span the bow they could be used on the walls with deadly effect against the enemy attacking from below. 1 Angleterre Ancienne, p. 25. 2 For the further development s. Wendelin Boeheim, Bogen und Armbrust (Z. f. hist. Waffenkunde 7. Dresden 1898). 56 The Axe. The axe though not primarily a weapon of war has served as such among all nations in their early stage of development since the Pre-historic Age. From the primitive wedge-shaped stone axe of the Stone Age 1 developed the battle axe of the Bronze Age, a variation of which was the celt, used for close fighting and for throwing, the chief weapon of the Celtic tribes 2 , which was in turn superseded by the iron war axes at an early period of the Christian era. Later these became the favorite weapon of the northern tribes especially among the Franks and the Scandinavians. That the axe was not a common war weapon of the Greeks and Romans is a well known fact, war axes being mentioned but twice in the entire Iliad 3 , once where Pisandros is described as carrying a battle axe beneath his shield, and a second time in the battle about the ships. 4 On the other hand among the Franks of the 5 th , 6 th , and 7 th centuries, the chief historians bear testimony to its frequency. Thus Sid. Apol. describing the war like appearance of the Franks says excussisse citas vastumper inane Upennes, et plagae praescisse locum Pan. Majorian, while in Epist. XX the throwing axes appear under the title securibus missilibus dextrae refertae. Procop. in the 6 th cent., and Agathias 5 in the 7 th assign 7uXe%os and TrSXexoe a|x<piatdpio as the chief weapons of the Franks. Greg, of Tours also 6 employs both the terms lipennis and Jahns, Trutzwaff., Taf. HI. Jahns, Taf. II. Bk. XIII, 1. 611. Bk. XV, 1. 711. Lib. II, c. 5. II, c. 27. 57 securis, and enumerates sword, axe, and spear as the chief weapons of the ordinary soldiery at the time of Clovis. Flodoardus and Hincmar 1 mention the francisca, while Isid. 2 at the beginning of the 7 th cent, remarks that the bipennis was called by the Spainards, i. e. Goths, francisca. In the case of the battle axe archaeological research has corroborated history, the Frankish grave-finds being rich in franciscas found together with the spear and shield. The difficulty, however, is to reconcile the kind of axe found with the terms lipennis arid &*jKpi<Tc6[i,oc of the historians 3 , both of which undoubtedly convey the mean- ing of doulle-axe, while all those discovered in the graves are single. The three principal types of axe met with in the grave-finds are: No. 1 the genuine francisca or thro wing-axe, which although varying in size and weight is the lightest and simplest of all axe forms 4 , with a comparatively short handle, and blade broadening out to a flat quarter of a circle with the peculiarity that the middle of the blade does not coincide with the middle of the axe head, this position of the blade probably strengthening the force of the blow when hurled. No. 2 much more seldom found in the graves of the Rhine Franks, is a slender axe with slightly curved or straight blade, the middle of which is horizontal to the centre of the axe head. 5 In fig. 91 is a still further evolu- 1 Hist. Eemens I, 13, and Vita St. Remigii. 2 Orig. XVIII, c. 6. 3 Cf. Veg. V, 15. Bipennis est securis habens utraque parte latissimum et acutissimum ferrum. 4 Lind., Merov. Altert., figs. 84 and 85. 5 Id., figs. 87 and 91. 58 tion of this blade, which form serves as connecting link between the francisca and the broad -axe. No. 3, the war or broad-axe 1 , has the widely extended blade characteristic of these axes, which was retained even into the Middle Ages. This type is often found together with the francisca in the same grave.