Naumburg sword & scabbard, 13thC.

Reconstruction of the sword based on Count Ekkehard II sculpture from Naumburg cathedral in Germany (1249-1255). This is still one of the most important sources in medieval art about 13th century scabbards and belting.

Measurements:
overall length 1030mm
blade length 885mm
grip length 90mm
blade width 47mm
thickness: at the base 5mm/ near the top 3mm
crossguard 205mm
pommel 50x46x31mm
balance 150mm
weight 1230g
sharp

In my opinion it is definitely the sword for a mounted knight: long blade, tight handle and balance moved slightly forward, all of this features confirm that claim. This is the sword with nice handling, light and prepared for a strong cutting from a horse back.

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Recreating the sword, I had to use some existing, oroginal swords, mostly German, as a base for the blade type and parameters. About the scabbard - after some research and consultations, I can be almost sure about the original look and belting style... I`ve made also before 3 scabbards in this style, and this was very helpfull to understand the form and technique.

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Some interesting fact is, that Count Ekkehard is actually an earlier person (early 11th century) but depicted by an artist in the middle of 13th century with 13th century clothing and sword...
Second interesting fact is that red and gold polychrome on the scabbard are actually remains of later painting, probably from 15th century. According to archeological research and German medieval art style, originally the colors was black scabbard and white belt.

I have added some wrapping over the grip, although an original grip is not visible on this sword but all other Naumburg swords have some decorative straps on the grips.

The pommel on my recreation is smaller than on the statue of Count Ekkehard. It was my decision to make it smaller, after research of original german swords with copper-alloy pommels, which are simply smaller in reality. Seems like the artist-sculptor added some size to this element, maybe to emphasize the presence of the sword.

Naumburg: original 13th century statue detail with sword and scabbard (15th century polychrome remains - also recreated by me, here preview: http://artofswordmaking.com/gallery/25/sword-with-naumburg-scabbard-13thc):