Strange sword

[fernando]

Excelent picture Yvain; and a work worth to be saved to one's files.
We can clearly see that the crown guard in this "florete" is the same as in photos posted by Thomas. No doubt a very early example.
While in this (French) case, swords of this typology were exclusively created for the school fencing, in the Iberian Peninsula swords could be similar to actual weapons, but with their blades originaly blunt and their points wrapped in a (stuffed) leather button, the so called 'sapatilha', the name also given to ballet shoes, due to their reinforced toes.
These training swords were called 'espadas pretas' (black swords), for their blades not being sharpend, their colour remained (forge) dark.
For those not so strict in following established rules, real swords could show up in the salon, their edges blunted and the tip 'folded' for the purpose.
Further atempts to modify the training into an actual fight (not so rare to occur), the salon master was there with his staff to punish the offender.


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