What a bizarre sword!

[Marc]

Originally Posted by ariel

A remarkably well-educated and knowledgeable participant on another forum has identified it as... Corrida implement!
According to him, descriptions of such a device can be found at:

M. Defourneaux, "L`Espagne au siecle d`or", 1996.
Page 176

Théophile Gautier,Voyage en Espagne 1862.
Page 353

and in multiple other Spanish and French contemporay sources.
It was allegedly used by peons ( maintenance workers) at the corrida to immobilize and to slaughter the still-alive bull.
Spanish colleagues: any access to first-hand information?
French speakers: can you verify the above sources?

Hmmm... pretty unlikely, I'm afraid.
The "medialuna" or "media-luna" was (still is) indeed a tool to hamstring the bull, not only in the "corrida" but also in cattle-herding. I managed to find a picture of an old one:



It is also known as "desjarretadera" ("harmstringer"). There's some modern variations that are no longer crescent-shaped. It was used at the end of a long staff (as it's mentioned in Gautier), in Spain and in areas of Spanish influence.



I'm no specialist, so I might be wrong, but it would really surprise me if the "sword" in discussion was such an instrument...

Best,

Marc

[Gavin Nugent]

Originally Posted by Marc

Hmmm... pretty unlikely, I'm afraid.
The "medialuna" or "media-luna" was (still is) indeed a tool to hamstring the bull, not only in the "corrida" but also in cattle-herding. I managed to find a picture of an old one:



It is also known as "desjarretadera" ("harmstringer"). There's some modern variations that are no longer crescent-shaped. It was used at the end of a long staff (as it's mentioned in Gautier), in Spain and in areas of Spanish influence.



I'm no specialist, so I might be wrong, but it would really surprise me if the "sword" in discussion was such an instrument...

Best,

Marc

Marc,

A very interesting post, thank you for showing your research here and Ariel thank you for starting and following through on this thread and a special thanks to your comrade.
Marc, the images you have bought to light here certainly helps my mind draw parallels to the same pole weapon found in some Chinese martial schools.
So many weapons are considered to have developed from a farming background, now it supports my thoughts in some way with this example shown below.

Thank you

Gav