Nuremberg Chronicle; depictions of edged weapons from the late 15th Century

[shayde78]

Hello everyone,

As I have been the beneficiary of a great deal of valuable information by being part of this forum, I have wanted to give something back for quite a while. My own collecting experience is amateurish, at best, so I felt that providing some reference material might be my best contribution.

I finally found time to flip through the extensive work known as the Nuremberg Chronicle. This text was published in 1493 in the city of Nuremberg. Its pages contain over 1800 illustrations made from 645 woodcuts (many images were used more than once). Having gone through these, I have counted over 80 images of swords and other weapons depicted.

Being that these are illustrations of weapons from a very specific date (I'm going off of the version printed in German - so December 1493, to be exact) and from a specific region, I thought there could be some value in posting the images here. If nothing else, it could provide a frame of reference against which to consider other indicators of dates/form/style/etc.

I'll start by posting the first ten, or so, images. If they seem to generate interest, I'll continue with the rest. While they are limited in the fact that they are woodcuts, and there is only so much detail that can be achieved through that medium, one can still discern variations in hilt type, pommels, blade dimensions, etc. Even a nice buckler in there (6th picture below). There are also depictions of how certain weapons were carried, and I am surprised by how prevalent thrusting attacks were depicted throughout, compared to cutting/slashing. This could just be a function of containing the action into a small space, but still seems notable. In a later set (not posted here yet), there is an impressive two-handed sword, with a blunt tip being used in a beheading. Is this an attempt to depict an executioner's sword, or did the tip of the sword simply not get depicted due to the limits of wood block printing?

The first bulk of images portray scenes from the opening chapters of the Bible. I've included one pictures of carpenters working on the Ark to show woodworking axes, and how the artist made these distinct from the axe used by Cain against his unfortunate brother a few pages earlier. If only ebay could so well tell the difference between carpentry tools and actual weapons! Also interesting is the curved sword carried by, I believe it is Abraham, when he scares the heck out of his son. My grasp of Old German isn't great, so please correct me if my context is wrong. Anyway, the curve and orientation of the hilt are 'unique', perhaps to portray the exoticism of the scene. A later set of images depicts an "Ottomanischen" with a clear depicted shamshir hilt.

Anyway, I'll start with these pictures. If the consensus is that I should post more, I'm happy to do so. Just let me know.

-Rob

[fernando]

Excelent material indeed, Rob.
Just show us the rest, will you ? .

[shayde78]

Originally Posted by fernando

Excelent material indeed, Rob.
Just show us the rest, will you ? .

Glad you like them, Fernando! Per your request - it takes a devil of a time to resize them from my phone to my laptop to here, so bear with me, as they won't all be posted today, but here is another set. I'm doing my best to keep these in the exact order that they appear in the text. I see some posted as strangely rotated - I'll try to keep that from happening as we move forward.

Although there is a statue of a man with a sword in the one picture, I thought the depiction of the ship was the more interesting feature (Columbus had yet to return from the Americas, so this is a momentous time in nautical history, and a nod to Mark who appreciates such things). The image of cavalry carrying polearms as they get swept away by the Red Sea is interesting - you can even see a flail and a fork in the mix. And the sword hanging from King Saul's belt seems of note in a European text of the period.

This will probably be the last set of the day - many more to come, though.

[Jim McDougall]

This is an outstanding and excellent contribution Shayde!!! and very thoughtful indeed. We have not had significant examples of medieval artwork entered here much since our late friend Matchlock (Michael), who is deeply missed as well as his entries.

It is great to see these 15th century arms and implements depicted in context and seeing how they were used, as you have well noted.

With the 'executioner' swords, they were indeed with 'rebated' tip ends, virtually almost 'squared' as these were not weapons but implements.
They have been discussed here a number of times over the years despite the unpleasantness of the topic, and are interesting just the same.

Never under estimate the importance of any entry you make here! we are all always learning and any question or observation is valuable as it may be the key to previously overlooked clues in a topic. Your entries and comments are always well placed in my opinion, and with these excellent images of this artwork.....Im with Fernando....................'fire at will' !!!!!

[shayde78]

Thanks Jim. High praise coming from anyone on here, you especially.

Two additional details I wanted to note, since we are seeing artists' renditions, it is important to consider their skills at reproducing what they saw in their day to day lives. The primary artists engaged in producing the illustrations for this Chronicle were Michael Wohlgemut (1434-1519) and his stepson Wilhelm Pleydenwurff (c. 1450-1494). They were well established artists in Nuremberg, producing not just woodcuts, but art in the round, such as sculptures and alters. That said, they had a certain apprentice in their workshop at the time this book was being illustrated, one Albrecht Dürer (1471-1528). Dürer certainly became the more famous of the bunch, and he illustrated a very well regarded fechtbuch, so he ultimately displayed a good grasp of both weaponry, and how it was to be used. His actual contributions to this text are not fully known, but it is a point worth noting.

You can see some of the reuse of woodblocks - the last two pictures here, the use of the Amazon pictures earlier, the same pole arms being carried by a different group of horsemen. I'm sure these represent early efforts at industrialized efficiency for the printing business in its infancy.

Here's the next set, then, for real, I'm done for the day

[Victrix]

Interesting pictures 9 and 10 which presumably show Abraham about to sacrifice his child and stopped by an angel. The angel is represented not with wings but in a cloud. It brings to mind the symbol of the swordarm in the cloud which sometimes appears on 17thC blades and banners. It seems to represent the sword of God or possibly Saint Michael.

[M ELEY]

Absolutely incredible reference material from this time period, Shayde! Thank you so very much for posting it! It is not only a monstrously important volume due to its historical reference, but also an incredible work of art! I am fascinated (and, at times, shocked!) by the graphics being depicted. The army riding their horses through a sea of blood on the battlefield certainly sticks with me!

[fernando]

Originally Posted by Jim McDougall

... We have not had significant examples of medieval artwork entered here much since our late friend Matchlock (Michael), who is deeply missed as well as his entries...

First thing that comes to mind !

[Lansquenet59]

Thank you very much for sharing, it's really interesting!