[Nathan Robinson]

Finding historical swords created for left-handed people is very unusual. I've seen some examples where I'm not entirely certain that the photo was not reversed. It's my understanding that most of Europe trained swordsmen as righties despite the way they were created at birth. It's just as well that I was born as a right-handed person, but this is still an interesting subject for me.

Browsing The Wallace Collection Web site, I came across this unusual sword. It's listed as a left-handed sword. Very strange.

If you have examples of any swords created for left-handed use, I'd be happy if you'd share them here.

Description and photo copyright The Wallace Collection.

Left-handed sword
Germany
c. 1580
Iron or steel, leather and silver, counterfeit-damascened
Length: 93.4 cm
Width: 2.6 cm
Weight: 0.83 kg
Inscription: 'IN TOLEDO' In large capitals; spurious
Maker's mark Stamped on one side
A525
Housekeeper's Room

[Anders Backlund]

You know, I could never really get used to the idea of making swords specifically for the right or left hand. In my mind, a sword should work just as well for the left hand as the right.

This is a bit unfortunate since there are so many swords I would have really, really liked if they weren't assymetrically designed to fit only one hand.

[Eric Myers]

I noticed a couple of interesting things about that sword. First, the inscription seems upside down. Don't most blades with inscriptions on the outside use the true edge as the bottom? Also, the pommel looks like it might be flat on the side away from the camera, although it could just be the shadow that makes it seem that way. If it is flat, that would point to this being one of a pair. Are there any other pictures of this sword?

[Vincent Le Chevalier]

[Jonathan Hopkins]

I agree with Vincent. The blade was likely made separately and then hilted for a left-handed person as a sword was often the product of several artisans.

Jonathan

[Gabriel Lebec]

Very interesting (and beautiful!). Personally, Anders, I really like asymmetry in design, including complex sword hilts. But of course, I am right-handed. ;-)

The Japanese had a saying... "there are no left-handed samurai." Of course, they probably said it in Japanese. ;-)

[Kjell Magnusson]

[Dustin R. Reagan]

[Nathan Robinson]

What is known of Renaissance-era (particularly English) treatment of left-handed swordsmen? This, I believe, is where most of the modern "common knowledge" (ie, passed around info as fact without knowing the source) originates.

[D. Austin]

Slightly off topic but still relevant I think, the castle Ferniehirst in Scotland has an anti-clockwise turnpike stair, built to suit that left handed inhabitants. Stairs of this type were typically clockwise to give an advantage to the defender who may be backing up the stair, sword in hand. This enables the defender to hold on with the left hand and also places the column up the centre of the stair, in the way of the attacker's sword.

[Tim Boyer]

[D. Austin]

This seems to me to be the most likely explanation. A "case" of rapiers, as shown below, would usually be flattened down the inside so they could fit together in a scabbard and appear as one, and yes, the intention was to use one in each hand.

[Nathan Robinson]

Speculation on the idea of the first sword in this topic being a piece of a matched pair aside, I'm still interested in seeing swords specifically made for left-handed use. I'm especially interested in ones that are also documented as such.

So in an attempt to drive this back on topic, I'm attaching one photo as published in Illustriertes Lexikon der hieb- Stich-Waffen. It is s Reitschwert, circa 1580.

Please note, however, that this is one that I find suspicious and actually believe the photo is reversed in the book. There are multiple other hilts in this book (pp. 70, 74, 77, 84, 106, 109, for example) that are left-handed and I find it extremely unlikely that these weapons are all meant to be that way. I suspect sloppy prepress that allowed the slides to be reversed when they were scanned and bad QC in the publishing workflow.

[Bill Grandy]

There was an amazing schiavona at the Baltimore Antique Arms Show this past year that was left handed. This photo I have isn't great, as you can't really tell, but there is a thumb ring in the basket which makes it purely left handed. You can kind of tell in the picture how the basket is larger on one side to protect the outside of the hand, but mostly you'll just have to take my word for it.

Regarding lefties in the Renaissance, various Italian masters of the 16th and 17th century gave advice on how to fence against left handed swordsmen. I couldn't say how common it was, but certainly it was common enough to take note of it.

[D. Austin]

I can't seem to save the picture to post here but lot number 599, auction 56 in the Hermann Historica online catalogue shows a left handed sword from the 17th century.

[Nathan Robinson]

[Anders Backlund]

[Vincent Le Chevalier]

[Gabriel Lebec]

Functionally speaking Japanese swords are symmetric (i.e., they could easily be wielded left-handed), although their cross-sections and decorative elements (including grooves, carvings, mountings, etc.) can of course be asymmetric. Katakiriba swords take this to an extreme, for example. However, Vincent's point about the teachings of extant ryuha is what I was referencing, not the swords themselves. In any case my original comment was of a much more light-hearted intent than it sounded.

Symmetry can of course be very beautiful as well... one attraction of many specific western swords for me is their great symmetry, and I strongly considered the Regent before ordering the Munich.

[Anders Backlund]