I sometimes get asked about recommendations for books, since folks see me buying and selling books here. I recently received 2 different PM’s asking similar things, so I thought I’d make a forum post. Others are welcome to comment on my personal thoughts (which is all these are) and to make their own recommendations. So we can avoid the thread being about all arms and armour books ever, I’m going to limit my discussion. :)

For the purpose of this thread, I’m looking at books whose pictures are (perhaps) their greatest asset. Of course, this is not to denigrate in any way the text that is the diligent work of the author(s). But these are books that have tremendous value (because of the images) even if you don’t speak the language of the accompanying text. Great text, regardless of language (since phone-based translation apps are pretty good these days), is a bonus. A variety of pictures, captioned with place and date of origin, might be the main interest, though. These lists will be subjective and will no doubt leave out things others feel I should have included. That’s okay. Tell me what I missed and why. :)

Examples of the kind of books I’ll recommend are Italian books (some of which will be listed in a follow-up post) I bought before translation apps were ubiquitous. The quality and number of pics alone made the purchases worthwhile (for me). The easy ability to translate text via my phone camera now has only enhanced their value. We’ll start with books that are primarily in the English language. I’m starting there simply because it is my own language, not because it’s any better or worse than any other. :)

These will be listed in no particular order. A rough, subjective pricing guide will accompany them, like what you might see in restaurant guide listings: $ (not very rare and/or relatively inexpensive), $$ (getting more rare and pricey), $$$ (less available, more pricey), $$$$ (difficult to find and/or quite expensive)

English Language:

Peter Finer catalogues. UK-based antiques dealer Peter Finer (https://www.peterfiner.com/) began putting out catalogues in 1995. They started out as annual publications, then went more periodic. Some are available only in-print, others only electronic from their website, and some are both. A member of the cataloguing team writes up a typically-well-detailed description (yes, I know text is not the primary focus) and there are often multiple high-quality pictures of an item. The catalogues vary in the eras they represent based on the inventory available and include swords, daggers, armour, firearms, etc. The cataloguing teams vary year to year, but include names like David Edge, Ian Eaves, and Ewart Oakeshott and other well-known authors. There are usually a couple of dozen items covered in each. $-$$ depending on the year and paperback vs. hardcover.

2,500 Years of European Helmets-Howard Curtis (Beinfield, 1978). A book by a Hollywood stuntman who was a collector. It pictures helms from 800 BC to the 18th century with most from the medieval/early Renaissance eras. Many are pictures Curtis took and can’t be seen elsewhere. 169 pictures of helms (mostly) and period art (very little). For a great helm lover like me, it is one of the best sources for that helm, apart from a more recent article on great helms. Exists in hardcover only with either dust jacket ($$) or clamshell ($$$).

Anything by Carlo Paggiarino (Hans Prunner Editore) (http://www.hansprunner.com/). Photographer Carlo Paggiarino’s books are stunning photo essays covering a particular museum or major private collection. They are chock full of large, high resolution color pictures that have enough detail to capture stitching, errant hammer strikes on a peen block, inclusions in the steel, etc. These photos gets you closer than you would be able to get in a museum. Arms and armour are both covered in varying amount depending on the collection being highlighted. After the photos comes an index with thumbnails and a caption/date for each item pictured. $$$ (most titles)-$$$$(the 2-volume set covering the Royal Armouries)

The Armoury of the Castle Churburg-James Mann, Mario Scalini, Oswald Graf Trapp (Magnus, 1996). Full disclosure: this could be listed with both German and Italian titles in future posts. However, 1 of the 2 volumes in this set is a reprint of the English-language 1929 catalogue by James Mann (70 black and white plates plus line drawings). The other volume has more and better pics (over 150 pages of pics with some in color) and text in Italian, German, and English. Armour is predominantly pictured, though there are some weapons (pole weapons, rapiers, crossbows). One of Europe’s great collections of armour. A large, heavy, limited printing, slipcased, 2-volume set that is not easy to find. $$$$

Some newer entries to the list:

Arms and Armor: Highlights from the Philadelphia Museum of Art-Dirk Breiding (Philadelphia MOA/Yale, 2020). Beautiful pics and write-ups that remind me a big Peter Finer catalogue (with slightly less text per item). Relatively inexpensive. $

Henry VIII: Arms and the Man-Rimer/Richardson/Cooper (Royal Armouries, 2009). Necessarily limited in time and scope given the subject, it nonetheless contains stunning up-close detailed pics that remind me of Carlo Paggiarino’s. Great essays by learned folks (not our focus :)), but stunning pics. $-$$

Arms & Armour in the Collection of Her Majesty The Queen: Volume I: European Armour-AVB Norman/Ian Eaves (Royal Collection Trust, 2016). Beautiful color and black and white pics from things in the royal collection. This volume is, of course, restricted to armour. I’m not sure when volume 2 (arms, I’m guessing) will come out. Big book, and quite nice. $$

That’s all for now. Later reply posts will cover Italian books and German books.

Next up: German titles. There are some absolute gems published in German, though only a few hold a candle to the Italian titles I’ll list later and some of the English titles above. I’ll start with some absolute favorites that I see as must-haves. These large books used to be hard to find and a little expensive, but copies can now be found for very reasonable prices.

Europaische Hieb- und Stichwaffen-Muller/Kolling/Platow (Militarverlag der Deutschen Demokratischen Republik, 1981). [many missing umlauts and such…] Title translates as “European Cut and Thrust Weapons.” These are items from what was then known as the Museums fur Deutsche Geschichte in Berlin, but is now part of the Deutsche Historisches Museum. Has 568 pics (some color, most black and white) of swords, daggers, polearms, hunting knives, shorter impact weapons from the 12th to 20th centuries. A real visual treasure trove of a variety of weapons. I’ve had a couple items in this one custom made for my collection through the years. $ (it’s cheap. Buy it! :))

Europaische Helme-Muller/Kunter (Militarverlag der Deutschen Demokratischen Republik, ????). The helmet version of the above. About 450 images of helms (mostly), period art, and military hats from the 6th century to the 20th. Another great resource that can be had cheaply. $ (buy this one, too!)

Kombinations Waffen des 15.-19. Jahrhunderts-Heinz-Werner Lewerken (Militarverlag der Deutschen Demokratischen Republik, 1988). “Combination Weapons of the 15th-19th Centuries.” The bible of these odd weapons. Unlike the two above, this has items from outside Berlin. It pictures (black and white and some color) over 200 combined weapons, with descriptions. Admittedly a niche subject, but it’s really interesting to see our ancestor’s creativity. Also relatively inexpensive. $

Now we come to what I consider the “honorable mentions.” These are nice, but smaller and less pic-heavy than the previous few. Still worth having on some level, but if I had to buy again, I’d start with the ones above. I’d still end up buying them all, though. :)

Illustriertes Lexikon der Hieb- & Stichwaffen-Jan Sach (Karl Muller Verlag, 1999) “Illustrated lexicon of cut and thrust weapons.” This almost made the list above, but is not as large a book as the ones above. It has 310 color pictures of swords, daggers, and polearms from the 15th-19th centuries. Included are some interesting rare things, like an all-metal Dussack. Can be very inexpensive. $

Katalog der Leibrustkammer-Thomas/Gamber (Kunsthistorisches Museum/Anton Schroll/Bramante, 1976/1990). A 2-volume catalogue of the museum in Vienna. Volume 1 covers the years 500-1530; volume 2 is 1530-1560. When buying, make sure you know whether both volumes are included in the sale. In terms of pics, Volume 1 has 126 B&W pics, Volume 2 has 144. Included in both are additional pictures of makers’ marks. $-$$

Blankwaffen-Hanns-Ulrich Haedeke (Deutsches Klingenmuseum Solingen/Rheinlander Verlag, 1982). A catalogue of edged weapons from that museum. Some small B&W pics, some larger B&W pics, and some color photos. A nice book to get after some of the others on this list. Not too pricey. $

Fantastic stuff, Chad. Very appreciated :-)

I would suggest:

Anything by Peter Connolly

Dufty's European Armour in the Tower of London (Bookfinder)

There are several important German and Dutch volumes on crossbows with cross-sections of original bows so you can see how the pieces of horn are put together. I think most of them are cited here

Have to include Manouchehr's definitive work on Persian arms and armour. It has a ton of photos of items that aren't normally available for westerners to study.

https://www.amazon.com/Arms-Armor-Iran-Bronze-Period/dp/3932942221

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Good point! Also Matthias Goll's Iron Documents http://archiv.ub.uni-heidelberg.de/volltextserver/17203/ (the biggest single collection of photos of the backs and insides of European plate armour)

Randall Hixenbaugh, Ancient Greek Helmets: A Complete Guide and Catalog ISBN 978-0-578-42371-5 (Biblio) looks very impressive but I have never seen a copy

Great recommendations and great idea for a thread Chad. I have written down several of those German books since I really don't have much there. I'll see where you head from here before posting any of mine. Good suggestions from everyone else as well

With Italian books, we get to some of the best that are also the most rare/expensive. Worth the money in most cases, especially if you find a deal.

Armi Bianche Italiane-Lionello Boccia/Eduardo Coelho (Bramante Editrice, 1975). This is the one to get if you can only afford 1 high-end arms book. It has 800 color and black and white pictures of Italian arms: swords, daggers, rapiers, polearms, etc. plus some period art. FYI, as far as I can tell, there are 2 printings of this one: the main 1975 unnumbered one and a limited edition printing (2,000 copies I believe, not offered for public sale) that is the same, except that it lacks some of the text/makers’ marks at the end. Still hard to find, but prices have come down quite a bit in the last 15 years. Still expensive, though. $$$$

Armi e Armature Lombarde-Boccia/Rossi/Morin (Electa Editrice, 1980). There may be another printing of this one (Bramante?). A nice big books on arms *and* armour from the Lombardy region of Italy. Since Milan is in that region, there is some great stuff covered. It has 362 pictures of Italian period art and arms and armour (including some firearms), mostly in black and white, though a good number are in colour. Less pricey than some on this list (relatively speaking). $$$-$$$$

L’Armeria Reale di Torino-Franco Mazzini et al (Bramante Editrice, 1982. Limited printing of 2,000 copies). Because it focuses on a collection instead of Italian items (or items from a region on Italy), it’s perhaps one of the more well-rounded of the Italian titles. 40 color pics and 390 black and white, showing swords, rapiers, daggers, armour, firearms, and artwork. $$$$

Armi e Armature Europee-Thomas/Gamber/Schedelmann (Bramante Editrice, ???). There are at least a couple of printings of this one. There is a limited, numbered printing in leather spine with a slipcase as well as a general printing (1965): cloth bound with dust jacket. The limited printing has tipped-in color plates (color pics printed on nicer paper and glued in) along with black and white pics (a total of 196 pics). Very good, but not as good as some of the others. Less pricey, though. $$-$$$

Armi e Armature Italiane[fino al XVIII secolo]-Aldo Mario Aroldi (Bramante Editrice, 1961, limited printing of 1,600 copies). Possibly reissued later. An absolutely massive book; the limited printing has a leather spine and pictorial slipcase. Tipped-in color photos plus black and white. 383 pics of arms, armour, polearms, and firearms. Less pricey than Armi Bianche and looks great on a shelf! But Armi Bianche is better…. $$-$$$

L’Arte dell’Armatura in Italia-Boccia/Coelho (Bramante Editrice, 1967. Limited printing of 1,600 copies with leather spine, pictorial slipcase). Armour-focused as the title indicates. 471 color and black and white pics, many of them large and quite detailed. This is a book that gets less notice than it should. $$-$$$

Honorable mention:
Posate, Pugnali, Coltelli da caccia-Luciano Salvatici (Museum Nazionale del Bargello, 1999). Cutlery, daggers, and hunting knives from the Bargello museum in Florence. A small book, but with some nice black and whites pics of these items. $-$$

Here's one to add:

Le Armature di S. Maria delle Grazie di Curatone di Mantova e l'Armature Lombarda del '400-Lionello Boccia (Bramante Editrice, 1982). Limited edition of 2,000 copies. This book deals with armour of the 14th and 15th century related to a group of harnesses found in a church in Mantua. The first part of the book has pics of contemporary harnesses and period art, while the second part shows the armour from the church. B&W pics with a surprising amount of color pics. Over 500 pics total. One of the rarest arms and armour titles out there, priced as such. If you're into armour, this is one to have. $$$$

I didn't include this one above because I hadn't seen it in person until this week. I finally acquired a copy (actually, two that just arrived from separate sources). It's pretty stunning. I will sell at least one copy, maybe both, as I'm more into arms than armour. But this comes up so rarely that I might hang onto one of them.... :)

There are other Italian books I've seen listed for sale that I haven't bought. Most are Bramante publications. They're things like:

Armi da Fuoco Italiane (Agostino Gaibi)
Armi e Armature Asiatiche (Tucci et al)
Armi e Armature Orientalli (Vianello)

While I haven't seen them, my guess is that they are in the same vein as others I've listed, just with their specific subject matter.

Some of these can be found on Ebay and other places for decent prices:

Armi e Armature Europee: https://www.ebay.com/itm/203967501682 or https://www.ebay.com/itm/284595776177 or https://www.ebay.com/itm/294352671667
Armi e Armature Italiane/Armi da Fuoco Italiane (2 volume set): https://www.abebooks.com/servlet/BookDetailsPL?bi=31115349179

If you're in the EU, this may be a good deal: Armi Bianche Italiane: https://www.ebay.com/itm/165411173786