The Book of the Sword

A History of Daggers, Sabers, and Scimitars from Ancient Times to the Modern Day

Richard Francis Burton

• Publisher: Skyhorse
• Year: 2014
• Print ISBN:
  9781626364011
• eBook ISBN:
  9781628738476
• Topic: History
• Subtopic: Ancient History
• Index: History

"The history of the sword, " the author writes in his introduction, "is the history of humanity." For centuries, the sword has been a symbol of power, strength, liberty, and courage. In the Middle Ages, the image of a sword was used to signify the word of God. Nearly every culture in history has forged blades from stone or steel to fight in times of battle and protect in times of peace.In this groundbreaking work, Richard Francis Burton, explorer, translator, scholar, and swordsman, draws on a wealth of linguistic, archaeological, and literary sources to trace the millennia-old history of the sword. From its earliest days as a charred, sharpened stick to the height of craftsmanship in the modern era, the sword has been the weapon of choice for warriors of all stripes.In eloquent, captivating prose, Burton describes:
• Dirks
• Daggers
• Knives
• Sabers
• Cutlasses
• The origin of the weapon
• The weapons of the age of wood
• The Copper Age of weapons
• The Iron Age of weapons
• The sword in ancient Egypt
• The sword in ancient Greece
• And moreNearly three hundred line drawings enhance Burton's richly detailed text. Any reader of history or student of weaponry will find this book a fascinating, highly enjoyable read.

Table of contents

• Front Cover
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Contents
• List of Illustrations
• Foreword
• Introduction
• Chapter I. Preamble: on the Origin of Weapons
• Chapter II. Man’s First Weapons—the Stone and the Stick. the Earliest Ages of Weapons. the Ages of Wood, of Bone, and of Horn
• Chapter III. The Weapons of the Age of Wood: the Boomerang and the Sword of Wood; of Stone, and of Wood and Stone Combined
• Chapter IV. The Proto-chalcitic or Copper Age of Weapons
• Chapter V. The Second Chalcitic Age of Alloys—bronze, Brass, Etc.: the Axe and the Sword
• Chapter VI. The Proto-sideric or Early Iron Age of Weapons
• Chapter VII. The Sword: What is It?
• Chapter VIII. The Sword in Ancient Egypt and in Modern Africa
• Chapter IX. The Sword in Khita-land, Palestine and Canaan; Phœnicia and Carthage; Jewry, Cyprus, Troy, and Etruria
• Chapter X. The Sword in Babylonia, Assyria and Persia, and Ancient India
• Chapter XI. The Sword in Ancient Greece: Homer; Hesiod and Herodotus: Mycenæ
• Chapter XII. The Sword in Ancient Rome; the Legion and the Gladiator
• Chapter XIII. The Sword Amongst the Barbarians (early Roman Empire)
• Conclusion
• List of Authorities
• Footnotes