07-31-2015, 03:10 PM
To all,
Ring pommels were cheap to make. All you had to do was create an extra-long tang and then bend it in a circle. Han Dynasty illustrations show daos (knife-swords) with tassles streaming from the pommels. An Iazage ring-pommel sword is in the British Museum, indicating a cultural connection to the Scythians since the sword appears to be a carryover from the old-fashioned Scythian akinakes. Late Sarmatian akinakae also had ring pommels.
As to the Sarmatian Sword originating in China. We have to qualify that statement by adding specifics, ie: the Type I Late Sarmatian sword. Here is quick history of Chinese edged weapons:
Shang Dynasty-- bronze knives, apparently of Karasuk origin (a steppe tribe in the Minusinsk Basin, also charioteers).
Western Zhou-- bronze knives evolve into two-edged weapons, aka swords from 15 to 23 inches in length. Google the following: "Gaojian's Sword" for an illustrated example. The sword in its scabbard is tucked into a sash or belt.
Eastern Zhou (Warring States)-- the Chinese call upon the aid of the early Saka and Yue-Chi for assistance against the formative Hsinong-nu. The Saka/Yue-Chi introduce iron blades. The sword becomes longer, first one meter (40 inches or so) in length. The swords have jade disk pommels and shallow-V-shaped hand guards. The scabbard slide is introduced, and also the heavy jade chape for a counter-balance. The fittings are decorated with a single chilong (hydra).
Qin Dynasty into Eastern Han-- the sword becomes multi-layered steel, and by the 1st Century AD it becomes 3-layered forge-welded sanmai. The jade fittings become more ornate and we see two chilongs (mother and baby hydra).
Throughout the entire period, from Gaojian's sword to the end of the Eastern Han period, the sword remained in the same configuration, double-edges, and the blade never exceeds 1 7/8 inches in width. Some swords were up to 1 1/2 meters long. They are shown on the Orlat Battle Plaque, they are found in Chinese and Sarmatian graves from China to the Black Sea littoral. They were (and remain) some of the finest swords ever made. Simonenko, Treister, Trousdale, and many Russian archaeologists have commented on them. BUT, the refined steel sword was introduced to the Chinese who at first developed the stylish bronze version.
By the end of the Western Han Dynasty and the beginning of Three Kingdoms, the double-edged jian was replaced by the simpler single-edged dao. This early dao usually had a ring pommel. At the same time the one-point suspension system (the scabbard slide) was replaced by a two-point suspension system.
The Alans required sophisticated long-swords made from the best steel. Even today, these swords are still made in the honored tradition. They are the result of 500 years of refinement, from bronze to iron to three-layered folded and welded steel. Today, the fittings are either brass or a resin jade-dust composite. But the blades are made in the same fashion they were when the Sarmatian craftsman scrimmed the battle scenes on the Orlat Plaque.
Sorry for the boring length of this expalation. :dizzy:
Ring pommels were cheap to make. All you had to do was create an extra-long tang and then bend it in a circle. Han Dynasty illustrations show daos (knife-swords) with tassles streaming from the pommels. An Iazage ring-pommel sword is in the British Museum, indicating a cultural connection to the Scythians since the sword appears to be a carryover from the old-fashioned Scythian akinakes. Late Sarmatian akinakae also had ring pommels.
As to the Sarmatian Sword originating in China. We have to qualify that statement by adding specifics, ie: the Type I Late Sarmatian sword. Here is quick history of Chinese edged weapons:
Shang Dynasty-- bronze knives, apparently of Karasuk origin (a steppe tribe in the Minusinsk Basin, also charioteers).
Western Zhou-- bronze knives evolve into two-edged weapons, aka swords from 15 to 23 inches in length. Google the following: "Gaojian's Sword" for an illustrated example. The sword in its scabbard is tucked into a sash or belt.
Eastern Zhou (Warring States)-- the Chinese call upon the aid of the early Saka and Yue-Chi for assistance against the formative Hsinong-nu. The Saka/Yue-Chi introduce iron blades. The sword becomes longer, first one meter (40 inches or so) in length. The swords have jade disk pommels and shallow-V-shaped hand guards. The scabbard slide is introduced, and also the heavy jade chape for a counter-balance. The fittings are decorated with a single chilong (hydra).
Qin Dynasty into Eastern Han-- the sword becomes multi-layered steel, and by the 1st Century AD it becomes 3-layered forge-welded sanmai. The jade fittings become more ornate and we see two chilongs (mother and baby hydra).
Throughout the entire period, from Gaojian's sword to the end of the Eastern Han period, the sword remained in the same configuration, double-edges, and the blade never exceeds 1 7/8 inches in width. Some swords were up to 1 1/2 meters long. They are shown on the Orlat Battle Plaque, they are found in Chinese and Sarmatian graves from China to the Black Sea littoral. They were (and remain) some of the finest swords ever made. Simonenko, Treister, Trousdale, and many Russian archaeologists have commented on them. BUT, the refined steel sword was introduced to the Chinese who at first developed the stylish bronze version.
By the end of the Western Han Dynasty and the beginning of Three Kingdoms, the double-edged jian was replaced by the simpler single-edged dao. This early dao usually had a ring pommel. At the same time the one-point suspension system (the scabbard slide) was replaced by a two-point suspension system.
The Alans required sophisticated long-swords made from the best steel. Even today, these swords are still made in the honored tradition. They are the result of 500 years of refinement, from bronze to iron to three-layered folded and welded steel. Today, the fittings are either brass or a resin jade-dust composite. But the blades are made in the same fashion they were when the Sarmatian craftsman scrimmed the battle scenes on the Orlat Plaque.
Sorry for the boring length of this expalation. :dizzy:
Alan J. Campbell
member of Legio III Cyrenaica and the Uncouth Barbarians
Author of:
The Demon's Door Bolt (2011)
Forging the Blade (2012)
"It's good to be king. Even when you're dead!"
Old Yuezhi/Pazyrk proverb
member of Legio III Cyrenaica and the Uncouth Barbarians
Author of:
The Demon's Door Bolt (2011)
Forging the Blade (2012)
"It's good to be king. Even when you're dead!"
Old Yuezhi/Pazyrk proverb
