I finally put a hilt on the blade that the "Appearance of Iron Inlay"( http://www.myArmoury.com/talk/viewtopic.php?t=5464 ) thread inspired me to forge - and, ironically, my attempts to put an authentic 10th Century finish on the blade have made the inlay quite subtle and difficult to capture on 'film' - I'll try again once the scabbard is done, and I've got more scuffs and scratches on the blade :D

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The silver/copper inlay on the hilt would probably overshadow the iron anyway, even if it was still in a freshly etched state -

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Beautiful hilt inlay!

Congratulations to a well made piece of work :)

Wonderful work Jeff! I remember admiring your fine blade back when you first posted about the inlay; I'm glad to see it complimented by such fine decoration! Was this your first time working with a silver and copper inlay on the hilt, or have you experimented previously? I realize you've discussed it a bit previously, but would you mind sharing with us what is involved in your attempts to recreate an authentic 10th century finish and maybe some of the information which has led to your conclusions on the matter?
Thanks for sharing this with us!

That's a fantastic sword! Gorgeous work on the inlays. I also like the fact that you used an hourglass shaped grip, just as the original swords had (for some reason rarely done in modern reproductions). How is the pommel constructed? More details please :)

Thats fantastic. Really has the heart of the originals.

That's really beautiful work Jeff. Is it for sale?

Excellent work there Jeff.
I agree that it looks in the heart of the originals, at least in my opinion.
Congrats
Jean

Love the fishbone pattern! Must have taken some serious manhours, doing that.

fantastic work man, love the hilt

Many thanks for the kind words, especially 'the heart of the originals' is a big compliment!

With the blade finish, I just did all the final finishing by hand with stones and powdered abrasives, instead of sandpaper and power tools. Then I took it a step further, imagining that in the course of a rough summer or two of European touring, a working blade might acquire some rust spots and re-sharpening scrapes, which might get partially polished out while on campaign – perhaps that was taking it too far? :confused:
Period polishing techniques are covered in Theophilus, “On Divers Arts” (early 1100s, but the techniques were presumably the same in 950, they are fairly basic and show up in traditional metal work all over the world), and I’ve been doing some pondering on the differences in craft and aesthetic outlook between then and now – looking at the artifacts, it’s clear the 10th Century workers had a somewhat different focus than the smiths of today, and that’s what I’m trying to understand, via the old processes.

The hilt & pommel are forged from Victorian-era Wrought Iron, some fairly pre-industrial Tunisian stuff, and inlaid by cutting tiny channels and hammering in tiny wires, again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again…I’ve used this technique on several smaller knife/seax parts, but this is the first complete sword hilt I’ve used it on – I can now confirm what I suspected before, it is a boatload of tedious work!

Patrick - it's either not for sale, or spoken for, I'm not sure which yet.

:eek: Drooool!
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Brian M

Of course Jeff, it's your way of approaching the subject and the boatload of tedious work as well that make the result so close to the original. It's the way the greatest in this art are following.

Jean,

I just read about the techniques you used in Oakeshotts' Archaeology of Weapons. And I must say that your work is impressive.

Also it has far more impact in understanding the difficulty in doing such work than the line drawings that Oakeshott included.

Beautiful work, Jeff. My future collection plans have an open spot for a sword very much like that one.

Stunningly beautiful!

And then I'm not just talking about the inlays.

Yes very beautifull and impressive work. :cool:

Great job..... you must be a very patient man.

Shane

Jeff,
So what did you inlay in the blade, or am I misunderstanding your initial post. Could you give a close up shot of the blade inlay if there is one. The sword is great!
Thanks,
Jeremy