[MR] Viking Women...Bow Chikka Bow Bow

[David Chessler]

At 09:26 AM 2/28/2008, Rorik Fredericsson wrote:
>Sword was great if you could afford it. Spear was the most common weapon.
>
>http://www.hurstwic.org/history/articles/manufacturing/text/viking_spear.htm
>
>There are plenty of spear heads available, but the shafts didn't
>survive. Best guess is a 7 to 10 foot pole with the spear head riveted
>on. Short spear and buckler is surprisingly effective.

In the Saga of Burnt Njal (Njal's Saga), 
Magnusson's translation, Gunnar is known for his 
use of the "halbard", and in his last stand, 
defending his house, he cuts off an assailant's 
arm with his "halbard." Clearly, this is not the 
combined axe head with pike point that was used 
in the late middle ages or early renaissance. It 
could have been a "spear," if the blade were considered "spear-like" in shape.

The Japanese Nagatina is usually translated 
"halbard," even though it's really a sword blade on the end of a long pole.

Also, while the vikings are not commonly 
considered to be bowmen, many of the fights in 
Njal's Saga did include archery, including 
Gunnar's defence of his house, and Njal's defence of his house.

Unfortunately, I read most of the sagas between 
about 1960 and 1965, and don't remember all the 
details. I do recall that Njal's Saga is said to 
be the best novel of the 12th century (about 
150-200 years after the events described).


> >From the Hávamál  (the Elder or Poetic Edda) The Words of Odin the High One
>Verse 38.
>Let a man never stir on his road a step
>without his weapons of war;
>for unsure is the knowing when need shall arise
>of a spear on the way without.
>
>On Wed, Feb 27, 2008 at 6:28 PM, David Chessler <chessler at usa.net> wrote:
> > At 01:23 PM 2/27/2008, Aedan Aylwyn wrote:
> >  >And here I was thinking they only used spear and magic helmet.  Has Elmer
> >  >led me astray all these years???
> >
> >  Read the sagas and it's sword and halbard. I don't think we know what
> >  the spear (or halbard) looked like. Plenty of surviving swords.