I just had a thought, in my SSG classes we never spare while wearing a scabbard. I fact, other than one exception, (Fiore's scabbard defense against dagger) I don't recall seeing any depictions in the flower of battle of anyone wearing a scabbard in combat.

This leads to two questions:

1) has anyone fought while wearing one, and how did it effect your sparing?

2) Any thoughts as to why we don't see it in the (at least Fiorean) texts.

And a little sub-question, are there scabbards pictured in the Germanic treatises?

I've sparred a few times wearing a scabbard. up until my latest version of my sword belt the scabbard will tend to get in the way and try and trip you. I have found that the best way to hang the scabbard is not canted as shown in latter illustrations but straight down the leg where it doesn't tend to flap about.

That said on the field at events as i tend to use a polearm if i carry a sword its normally with out scabbard and hung naked form a ring on my belt.

I have fought in the past with a scabbard, and my opinion is somewhat different. I prefer to have the scabbard almost horizontal, to keep it out of the way of my legs. Although all leather scabbards are better straight down the leg, since they generally won't support themselves anyways.

Back when I used to only teach rapier, we actually did training in walking, standing, sitting, etc. while wearing a sword in a scabbard.

Some of the German sources show scabbards, especially the Gladiatoria group, in which the combatants start with spears in hand and daggers and swords in scabbards. They also accumulate piles of lost/discarded/broken weapons at their feet as the plays progress.

There are a few other examples. Falkner for sure and maybe Talhoffer have plays drawing from the scabbard.

In all art from circa 1350 to 1400 which I have seen, longsword scabbards had a single point of suspension, so the scabbard would get in the way while walking. A number of pictures show that when someone did have to walk with a cavalry sword, they often carried it sheathed in their hand (so Fiore teaches how to defend if attacked in such a situation). An unarmoured duellist or someone practicing fencing wouldn't wear their scabbard, and someone attacked by surprise on foot would be unlikely to be wearing a longsword, so that leaves some kinds of armoured combat. And so we see sheathed blades in the 6th, 8th, and 9th spear pictures in the Getty (with the newfangled two-point angled suspension on the sword scabbards). The PD has sheathed daggers in the spear, staff and dagger against spear, and two clubs against spear sections.

In addition, a scabbard would be an extraneous detail which Fiore's illuminators had no reason to include. Fiore's illuminators sometimes showed accessories like belts or pouches or fancy hats, but for the poste and plays they usually kept things simple (saving them time and ink and whoever commissioned each manuscript money).

There's plenty of scabbards hanging off folks who are fighting on horse and foot both in the Maciejowski Bible.

Here is Manuscript Miniatures with 1350-1400 in their search engine: http://manuscriptminiatures.com/search/?year=...ew=gallery

As one can see, the scabbards in evidence mostly seem to feature a single point of attachment, though they appear to be hanging in an angled position as often as not. (They also often show such a position with the guy's hand on the hilt, but that doesn't count for obvious reasons.) There are a couple that make me wonder if I'm looking at something fancier, but we aren't exactly looking at photo-realism here.

Also, although I'm obviously speaking in general gut feeling here after looking over a few pages, it seems to me that it is the longer swords featuring an angled suspension, and the shorter swords are the ones more frequently straight up and down.


Edit: Something interesting here: http://manuscriptminiatures.com/le-pelerinage...1969/1619/

I'm guessing pilgrim's staff, though if that is a rondel, it is the mother of all rondels. :D

I see. Thanks for verifying that. It would certainly be nice to see some art from the late 14th century showing like depictions of scabbard suspension. It seems odd that this type of suspension would just show up one day separate from other major stylistic changes in armament (Given, the fellow in the center of the picture you posted seems to wear a form of Great Bascinet). Perhaps someone will come out of the woodwork with something.