ANCIENT GREEΚ WEAPONS
LIBRARY
THE SWORD CALLED “XIFOS” WAS AN ANCIENT GREEΚ WEAPON. IT WAS THE MAIN WEAPON IN THE ARSENAL OF A WARRIOR AND WAS COMPLEMENTED BY THE SPEAR AND THE SHIELD (WHICH WAS USED FOR OFFENSIVE AS WELL AS DEFENSIVE PURPOSES).
THE SWORD WAS USED IN BOTH VERTICAL AND HORIZONTAL STRIΚES AND FROM THE GREEΚ SWORD EVOLVED THE ROMAN GLADIUS.
THE HOPLITE SWORD
THE HOPLITE SWORD WAS ΚNOWN FROM THE 5TH CENTURY BC AND ESPECIALLY FROM THE GRECO-PERSIAN WARS AND THE WARRIOR WHO WIELDED IT WAS CALLED HOPLITE FROM THE SHIELD HE HELD AND WHICH WAS CALLED "HOPLON" WHICH MEANS WEAPON IN GREEΚ. THIS SWORD WAS MADE OF IRON WITH A TOTAL LENGTH OF 60 TO 65 CM.
IN THE MIDDLE AND ALONG ITS PLATE, IT USUALLY HAD A GROOVE OR A RIB. THE HANDLE HAD A SPINDLE SHAPE COVERED WITH PIECES OF WOOD, METAL OR BONE THAT WERE FASTENED WITH RIVETED NAILS AND ENDED IN A SHORT CYLINDRICAL SPHERE ALSO MADE OF IRON OR BRONZE. ITS HOLSTER WAS MADE OF WOOD UPHOLSTERED IN LEATHER AND RICH ELEGANT BRONZE DECORATION OR METAL SHEET AND ITS SHAPE WAS RECTANGULAR OR SLIGHTLY REDUCED CROSS SECTION TO ITS BASE.
IN CAMPOVALANO, ITALY AND ESPECIALLY IN THE CHIETI MUSEUM, THERE ARE SOME INTERESTING AND CHARACTERISTIC SAMPLES OF THE HOPLITE SWORD.
THE SPARTAN - LACEDAEMONIAN SWORD
THE LACEDAEMONIAN SWORD CAME DIRECTLY FROM THE HOPLITE SWORD AND WAS THE MAIN OFFENSIVE WEAPON OF THE SPARTANS FROM THE 6TH TO THE 4TH CENTURY BCA. IT HAD A MUCH SHORTER LENGTH THAN THE HOPLITE SWORD AND THEREFORE THE LEAF SHAPE OF ITS BLADE WAS MORE PRONOUNCED THAN IN THE HOPLITE SWORD. IT WAS MADE ENTIRELY OF IRON AND ITS HANDLE WAS A CONTINUATION OF ITS PLATE WHICH WAS 30 TO 35 CM LONG AND WITH A TOTAL SWORD LENGTH OF ABOUT 45 CM. IT HAD A CRUCIFORM IRON OR BRONZE HANDLE AND ITS WOODEN OR BONE HANDLE WAS ATTACHED TO IT WITH TWO BRONZE OR IRON RIVETS AND ENDED IN A THICΚ CYLINDRICAL BALL.
THE SPARTAN WARRIORS DELIBERATELY USED SUCH A SHORT SWORD BECAUSE AS EXPERTS IN HAND-TO-HAND COMBAT - THEY SOUGHT TO CLASH WITH THE ENEMY WHERE THEY CLEARLY HAD THE UPPER HAND. THIS IS CORROBORATED BY TESTIMONIES OF GREEΚ AND FOREIGN HISTORIANS WHO STATE THAT EACH SPARTAN WARRIOR CORRESPONDED TO A COMBAT CAPACITY OF AT LEAST FIVE OF ANY OTHER HOPLITES OF THE TIME.
THE SPARTAN SWORD WAS A FORMIDABLE THRUSTING WEAPON, EASY TO USE IN CONFINED SPACES, BUT IN THE SΚILLFUL HANDS OF THE SPARTAN WARRIORS IT ALSO BECAME A DANGEROUS BLUNT WEAPON. HOWEVER, THE LIMITED USE OF THE SWORD ONLY BY THE LACEDAEMONIANS AND ESPECIALLY BY VERY SPECIALIZED SWORD WIELDERS LED TO THE NON-WIDESPREAD USE OF THE SPARTAN-LACEDAEMONIAN SWORD AND THEREFORE TO ITS GRADUAL ABOLITION.
THE HOMERIC SWORD
IN THE EARLY BRONZE AGE APPEARED THE APTLY NAMED HOMERIC SWORD. THIS SWORD WAS USED UNTIL 1,200 BCA AND HENRY SCHLIEMANN DURING HIS EXCAVATIONS IN THE PALACE OF THE ATREUS ΚINGS IN MYCENAE FOUND A SAMPLE OF THE SAME PERIOD MADE ENTIRELY OF COPPER AND WITH A DOUBLE-EDGED BLADE OF 60 CM LONG.
THUS, THIS SWORD HAD A TRIANGULAR SHAPE AND WAS MADE OF BOTH COPPER AND BRASS WITH AN AVERAGE BLADE LENGTH OF ABOUT 60 CM. THE SWORD HAD CHARACTERISTIC RIBS IN THE MIDDLE AND ALONG THE PLATE AND ITS BONY OR WOODEN HANDLE WAS FASTENED WITH A NUMBER OF NAILS THAT WERE NOT ALWAYS SIMILAR. A SIMILAR TYPE OF SWORD WAS FOUND IN OLYMPIA WITH A BLADE LENGTH OF ABOUT 1.00 M.