[Richard Hare]

Hello all,

There seems to be quite a bit of interest in Viking age, and Anglo-Saxon swords, and after looking at Mike's lovely new Albion "Thegn" I thought I'd write about my Anglo-Saxon sword From Vladimir Cervenka.

Stats for a start;

Weight..............................................2 lbs 1oz............................Tad under 1KG
O/all length..................................... 35 3/8"................................90cm
Blade length....................................29".......................................74cm
blade width @ hilt..........................2 1/8"....................................53mm approx
Blade width just behind tip...........1 1/4"...................................32mm
Distal taper @ guard.........................................................,,,,,,,,....6 mm (or slightly more)
half way down,.............................................................................2.5 mm...............behind tip,..........1.5 mm

Grip,......................................................4".........................................10 cm

POB., from guard................................4 1/4" .................................108 mm

Price was 320 Euros,
Prices vary with exchange rate, and this was ordered a while ago.
Vladimir is a very good man to deal with, Very friendly and most helpful.
He is most happy to give a quote on his work.

I'm really please with Vladimir's work!
This one is a loose copy of an Anglo-Saxon sword found at Gilling-West, in Yorkshire. ( I'm from Yorks, so wanted a sword of this type.)
I had asked Vlad about this sword, and he asked for pictures, and very kindly ofered to make it, and send it along with the others I'd ordered a year or so earlier. (How could I refuse,.....paying was my only worry!!)
The original sword has been dated to mid 9th century.
I asked Vlad. to do this one plain, to keep cost down as the original had silver bands on grip and silver on pommel.
Also, I wanted to dress up the pommel a bit myself.

Vladimir hand-forges his swords and fittings, so they show slight variations but this, and the (to me) very pleasing patination give the sword a lovely look!
The wire wrap feels very comfortable, and gives a good grip. (He'll do any number of varying wire or leather wraps)


This sword handles like a dream! it is so well balanced and fast, it's hard to put down, and for some reason, it seems like recovery time is non-existant. (this can't be the case, but it just seems to "think ahead" and there is no thought of having to "reign it in" ...to use a very unprofessional term!!!)
The lighter weight might take a bit of the bite out of it in use, but there again, the speed in handling may compensate for this.
This sword came "sharp" but had some slightly thickish areas in the edge, that require work. Still, it bit me when first examining it, so it's not too far off sharp!
Fullers are nice and wide.
The pommel very comfotable, with nothing to dig into the wrist



The picture which follow also show the very nice work he did on the type 'S' I also received at the same time, but I won't give stats on this one here as it may confuse things. i'll only say it too is a lovely sword IMO!.

Best wishes,

Richard.

here are pics;

[Mike Arledge]

Very nice, always glad to see more Anglo-Saxon designs. I don't always know if I like the finish on your blades or not, but most of the time, I think I do.

[Eric Hejdström]

Nice swords Richard! I have a sword from Cervenka too and it's a very nice sword. I chose the same finish as you but i regret that I didn't order it with patina on the hilt only. But on the other hand the finish will wear out after a few sharpenings and polishings. The only thing that I don't really lika about mine is that the grip is a bit long. I asked Vladimir to make it a bit longer because I have quite wide hands. But it was really not neccessary to do that adjustment. Unfortunately the sword haven't seen as much service as it should and being stored in a normal, and far too dry, apartment for a few years the handle has begun to creak and loosen a bit. But putting in a bucket of oil for a while should do it. Just a matter of actually doing it.. The two swords on the pictures were orderer at the same time and the one without ornaments, having copperwire in the handle, is mine. The other one belong to a very good friend of mine. As you can see the grip on mine is a tad bit longer. I think it handles really well. The lower one is a mean piece, almost 6 cm (ca 2.36") wide just below the hilt! If anyone is interested I can post details about length, weight etc. later.

[Luka Borscak]

Have anybody handled Cervenka's type H viking sword? I'm thinking of buying either this one (2000114) or Petersen type S reviewed here on myArmoury (2000115)... And also what is the earliest example of type S swords? If it's better to open a new topic on this, I will.

[Richard Hare]

Mike,

Re. patination,
It's each to his own, I like it, but if I was into re-enacting, a patinated blade wouldn't look right!
It's just that some modern swords have a factory plastic look about them, ....even if they are good.

Eric,

Very nice swords!
I think you are quite right, The patination on the blade will soon wear off with sharpening, and only leave it showing in the fullers. This would be very nice! It would look like some of the famous old swords, dug from burial mounds and brought back into service for a hundered years or more. (Like Hrolf Kraki's most celebrated sword, Skofnung!)

Luka,

I've not handled one of Vladimir's type H swords, it would be a bit more restrictive on the wrist than the type S, but seeing as I like the feel of Indian tulwars, I don't think it would bother me a lot!

It appears the type S was developed a bit later than other Viking hilts, so maybe mid 10th century??

I've written this reply twice already, and when I added pics, I lost the lot. so, no pics this time!

Best wishes Richard.

[Luka Borscak]

Thank you Richard. Cervenka's type S is 1.35kg (3lb) and has a point of balance 15-20cm (quoted from Cervenka's e-mail) so I'm a bit worried that it would be very tip heavy and slow. I would take it because I want earlier viking sword but that PoB worries me. What do you think of Moving the Type H hilt to 2000115 sword that is lighter and nicely balanced? I know it would change balance but I hope not too much?

[Richard Hare]

Luka,

I am a bit puzzled by Vladimir's e-mail.
My type S weighs in at 2 lbs 6 oz, and balances at 5" from guard.
I see on his web-site that the type S pictured has a blade width of 48mm, whereas mine is about 53mm at hilt.
The good thing about dealing with him, he will pretty well make what you want, so if you want a type S weighing no more than 1kg,(or whatever) he will make you one at no extra cost.

I have added pictures (hopefully!!!) of him flexing one of his blades. These pictures he kindly sent me when I enquired how much flex to expect from my blades. (I didn't want to flex them too far myself, and spoil them!

Best wishes
Richard.