Prittlewell Seax
I think i'm in the right place for this now :)


Thought I would post a pic of this one I made a while ago for the author Stephen Pollington.Found in an early Anglo Saxon context in Essex, England.



It is a slightly unusual seax with a straight back and long slim curve to the belly. I have not seen many with that profile in the UK from the early period although it reminds me somewhat of later medieval finds. Am I alone in this ? I can get quite inspired by the obscure and the unusual has anyone else come across this pattern elsewhere ? I have seen but a couple namely Kings worthy early AS cemetery in Hampshire UK and this one.

Just over 9 inches in the blade with an iron pommel.
prittlewell seax
Mark,
I really like this seax. It is beautiful and very elegant. Well done.
Any idea on the age of the "Prittlewell" seax?Would it be the early 6th Century?
Anyway, I love the lines of yours and the grip is terrific.
Stephen is very lucky.
This is a lovely piece. The grip is just outstanding. Really well done.
Seax
Hi Mark
Great to see you getting your fine craft skills on display on the correct group ;) How about sharing some pics of your other great work here for fellow forumites?

best
Dave
Thanks for the interest guys.

Peter, I believe the date is early 7th cent on this one but I may need to double check. Glad to see I am sparking your interest :)

Tim thankyou it is Red deer antler polished back and hand carved, something I need to work on as I am not really very artistic at all. I can make a knife but ask me to draw it and I am lost. As carving means you need to draw the design first I struggle, the carving is not the issue, its the drawing.

Dave you are supportive as always, I will carry on working hard to live up to it, it is appreciated of course. I will look back at my past work to see what may interest the kindly fellows here and post a few pics.
Really interesting piece!

Different, but still authentic looking. Impressive!

What kind of steel did you use? It looks laminated...
Thank you Paul,

It is unusual but based on the profile of the real thing, the pommel gave me the hilt length and approximate width as well.

Not laminated i'm afraid, 01 tool steel, the light is giving that effect. It is scary sharp though.
Re: Prittlewell Seax
Mark Routledge wrote:
I think i'm in the right place for this now :)


Thought I would post a pic of this one I made a while ago for the author Stephen Pollington.Found in an early Anglo Saxon context in Essex, England.

http://i244.photobucket.com/albums/gg15/roots...0001-2.jpg

It is a slightly unusual seax with a straight back and long slim curve to the belly. I have not seen many with that profile in the UK from the early period although it reminds me somewhat of later medieval finds. Am I alone in this ? I can get quite inspired by the obscure and the unusual has anyone else come across this pattern elsewhere ?

Below are a couple of continental examples. Normally the back curves slightly down near the tip, but as you can see, the bottom one has a practically straight spine. Mind though, while the british and continental saxes share a lot of features throughout their development, the british have their differences too (f.e. the pommel and bolster materials/designs in these narrow saxes). The blades on the continental examples are nearly always engraved with decorations, from simple lines to very complex patterns. The grips, when preserved, tend to be wood covered with a thin sheet of leather.


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Sax_Weingarten_grave_253_Germany.jpg


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sax_Weingarten_grave283_Germany_wooden_grip_bronze_pommel_L417mm_GrL135mm_BlL282mm_W32mm_gilded_bronze_buttons.jpg

Thank you Jeroen, that is very useful.

I am familier with the top picture ( It is on my to do one day list ) but not the second, do you have any dimentions for that one ? It is very similer in profile to the Prittlewell seax but with a different design of pommel.

Interesting......very.
Mark Routledge wrote:
Thanks for the interest guys.

Peter, I believe the date is early 7th cent on this one but I may need to double check. Glad to see I am sparking your interest :)

Tim thankyou it is Red deer antler polished back and hand carved, something I need to work on as I am not really very artistic at all. I can make a knife but ask me to draw it and I am lost. As carving means you need to draw the design first I struggle, the carving is not the issue, its the drawing.

Dave you are supportive as always, I will carry on working hard to live up to it, it is appreciated of course. I will look back at my past work to see what may interest the kindly fellows here and post a few pics.


You're being far too modest. I find myself looking at your image gallery and admiring your art at least 3 times a week ;) :)
Gorgeous- simply gorgeous! I love the detail on the scabbard as well. As usual a beautiful and well-executed historically inspired piece (Historically Inspired is not a subtle insult in my vernacular, just a description) Jeroen might be able to check me on this but I recall seeing other straight-spined saxes from Sweden.
Michael Pearce wrote:
Gorgeous- simply gorgeous! I love the detail on the scabbard as well. As usual a beautiful and well-executed historically inspired piece (Historically Inspired is not a subtle insult in my vernacular, just a description) Jeroen might be able to check me on this but I recall seeing other straight-spined saxes from Sweden.


Thank you Michael,

Yes I agree there are a fair few later period swedish seax with straight backs. Not so commen in my neck of the woods though so interesting for their rarity.

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