[Jeremy V. Krause]

Hello everyone,

What do you think about this. The handle length of sexes in general and specifically long seaxes seems to suggest that these could have been used two handed.

I have a fine reproduction of the Seax of Beagnoth which can be seen here. http://myArmoury.com/talk/viewtopic.php?t=335...t=beagnoth and here http://myArmoury.com/talk/viewtopic.php?t=32102

The seax can feel a bit ponderous in one hand but really sings in two.

So what do folks think or is this even an answer that can be made?

[Mark Moore]

I have a Kris Cutlery langseax with an 8'' grip. I can hand 'n a half it, but it feels strange to me, being used to longer swords. I guess I would say it feels like overkill...but that's just me. ......McM

[Zach Gordon]

I haven't heard mention in any sagas specifically about the practice..
Maybe there's some artistic evidence around.

I've always thought of these more like machetes, or hunting swords, where you can choke up (so to speak) for finer work like butchering... Or you can hold from the end of the handle for more momentum when you chop.
With shields around, I can't imagine anyone specifically wanting to hold a weapon with two hands... Unless they have lost said shield.

Just my 2¢
Z

[Steve Fabert]

Anyone who carried a shield would have had a hard time using two hands to swing a cutter of any kind. I always thought that was why only fully armored combatants could use a two-hander, because only they could leave their shields at home.

[Lafayette C Curtis]

Using weapons two-handed while carrying a shield is pretty doable if the shield has a guige that lets it hang from the neck and shoulders. Some Carolingian shields in the era appear to have had guiges. I'm not so sure that it would have been the case for the English, though; the Regia Anglorum authenticity guide remarked that they couldn't find evidence for two-handed spear fighting except by people dressed in hauberk and helmet (and thus having less need of a shield).

[G Ezell]

I'm making a reproduction of the Little Bealings seax, which has a blade almost 27 inches long and a thick spine. The balance point is 7 1/2 inches forward of the handle, so it handles more like an ax than a rapier. It certainly could be used two-handed, but I don't think this would have been done on the battlefield due to the heavy reliance on shields, but I can certainly see it happening in a self-defense situation when a shield wasn't handy.

[Philip Dyer]