A rapier by Pietro Hernandez

Jim McDougall · 12th April 2017, 08:32 PM

It seems that in observing these 'running wolf' marks in many examples which cover several centuries, there is far more than variation in the exemplars, and many reach the point of abstraction. In my opinion these figures were chiseled into the blades by shop workers rather than the artisans who were charged with inscribing them.

These workers were not skilled artistically (obviously) but the marks were probably intended as talismanic imbuement which derived from conventions such as that known as 'Passau Art', in which the running wolf 'of Passau' was one of the leading devices as far as sword blades.

The notion seems to have been that despite the artistic deficiency of the application, the talismanic factor would stand in effect simply by the act of the marking. The superstitious fervor that existed with weaponry in these times is something often deeply underestimated in studies of them, which is why markings and inscriptions are most often not well attended to.

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12th April 2017, 08:32 PM	#11
Jim McDougall Arms Historian Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Route 66 Posts: 10,190	It seems that in observing these 'running wolf' marks in many examples which cover several centuries, there is far more than variation in the exemplars, and many reach the point of abstraction. In my opinion these figures were chiseled into the blades by shop workers rather than the artisans who were charged with inscribing them. These workers were not skilled artistically (obviously) but the marks were probably intended as talismanic imbuement which derived from conventions such as that known as 'Passau Art', in which the running wolf 'of Passau' was one of the leading devices as far as sword blades. The notion seems to have been that despite the artistic deficiency of the application, the talismanic factor would stand in effect simply by the act of the marking. The superstitious fervor that existed with weaponry in these times is something often deeply underestimated in studies of them, which is why markings and inscriptions are most often not well attended to.