Map

object

Sword

Objects · Symbols

A bladed weapon of edge and point. Oaths on swords and later tarot suits borrow the tool; they do not define metallurgy.

Norse tradition

Roman religion

  • Sword appears in Roman religion.

    Virgil’s Aeneid seats the sword among Trojan and Italian arms — gifts, duels, and battle gear of the war for Latium. A named sword in that epic, not hasta as the spear already walked and not a blade-checklist dump.

    from Virgil · Aeneid, 19 BCE (unfinished at the poet’s death)

    appears in · sourced · documented

Hellenic religion

  • Sword appears in Hellenic religion.

    Pausanias notes swords among dedicatory arms in Greek sanctuaries. A named sword in that periegesis, not Norse sword-mark speech already walked and not a modern fencing dump.

    from Pausanias · Description of Greece, c. 150–180 CE

    appears in · sourced · documented

  • Sword is used in Hellenic religion.

    The Iliad seats the sword (ξίφος / φάσγανον) as close-combat gear throughout Achaean and Trojan fighting. A named Homeric sword in use in that epic, not a Pausanias temple-sword display alone and not gladius as a Roman type-name.

    from Homer · Iliad, c. 8th–7th century BCE (this form)

    used in · sourced · documented

Egyptian religion

  • Sword appears in Egyptian religion.

    Herodotus’s Egyptian army speech names large swords among Egyptian fighting gear beside spears and shields. A named sword in that traveler’s Egypt, not a sickle and not the Pausanias Hellenic sword seat.

    from Herodotus · Histories, c. 440s BCE

    appears in · sourced · documented

Celtic tradition

  • Sword appears in Celtic tradition.

    Culhwch and Olwen in the Mabinogion seats swords among Arthur’s arms and the anoethau — Caledfwlch named, Wrnach’s sword sought. A named sword in that Welsh prose, not Excalibur as a later romance flatten and not Carwennan as the knife already walked.

    from Anonymous (Welsh prose); Sioned Davies (translation) · The Mabinogion, medieval Welsh manuscripts; Davies trans. 2007

    appears in · sourced · documented

  • Sword appears in Annwn.

    The Mabinogion’s First Branch has Pwyll take Arawn’s shape and fight Hafgan with the arms of Annwn’s court. A named sword in that otherworld combat, not every Celtic sword dump and not Caledfwlch as Culhwch’s Arthur-blade alone.

    from Anonymous (Welsh prose); Sioned Davies (translation) · The Mabinogion, medieval Welsh manuscripts; Davies trans. 2007

    appears in · sourced · documented

  • Sword appears in Arthurian cycle.

    Culhwch and Olwen in the Mabinogion seats swords among Arthur’s named arms and the tasks of his court — Welsh Arthurian cycle speech, not the later Morte d’Arthur alone. A named sword in that Culhwch Arthuriana, not Excalibur as a French/English flatten.

    from Anonymous (Welsh prose); Sioned Davies (translation) · The Mabinogion, medieval Welsh manuscripts; Davies trans. 2007

    appears in · sourced · documented

Shinto

  • Sword appears in Shinto.

    The Kojiki seats swords among cosmogonic and campaign arms — Izanagi’s underworld blade, Susanoo’s serpent-killing edge, and later imperial fighting speech — beyond any single named treasure. A generic sword attestation in that compilation, not Kusanagi, not Totsuka-no-Tsurugi, and not Futsu-no-Mitama under another spelling.

    from Ō no Yasumaro (compiler); Donald L. Philippi (translation) · Kojiki, 712 CE; Philippi trans. 1968

    appears in · sourced · documented

  • Sword appears in Kojiki.

    Philippi’s Kojiki attests swords as ordinary and named fighting gear across kami and imperial episodes. A sword inside that text hub, kept apart from the already-walked named imperial blades.

    from Ō no Yasumaro (compiler); Donald L. Philippi (translation) · Kojiki, 712 CE; Philippi trans. 1968

    appears in · sourced · documented

  • Sword is used in Shinto.

    In the Kojiki swords are employed as killing and campaign instruments — Izanagi’s underworld blade, Susanoo’s serpent fight, and later arms — beyond any single named treasure. Named weapon use in that kami narrative, kept apart from kusanagi/totsuka/futsu walks.

    from Ō no Yasumaro (compiler); Donald L. Philippi (translation) · Kojiki, 712 CE; Philippi trans. 1968

    used in · sourced · documented

Vedic tradition

Mesopotamian tradition

  • Sword appears in Mesopotamian tradition.

    The Epic of Gilgamesh seats swords among the weapons Gilgamesh and Enkidu carry against Humbaba and the Bull of Heaven. A named sword in that Mesopotamian epic, not an Iliad combat dump and not shield as the defensive plate alone.

    from Epic of Gilgamesh, c. 1200 BCE (this recension)

    appears in · sourced · documented

  • Sword is historically related to Book.

    In Twining’s Symbols and Emblems of Early and Mediæval Christian Art, one apostle figure holds a sword as well as a book, an attribute suited to St Jude or St Paul — the sword is carried with that book.

    from Louisa Twining · Symbols and Emblems of Early and Mediaeval Christian Art, 1852 (new ed. 1885)

    historically related to · sourced · documented

  • Sword is historically related to Cross.

    In Twining’s Symbols and Emblems of Early and Mediæval Christian Art, Abraham’s sacrifice shows his sword stayed by the Almighty hand, while a Ravenna mosaic places the hand above the cross — the sword scene sits with that cross.

    from Louisa Twining · Symbols and Emblems of Early and Mediaeval Christian Art, 1852 (new ed. 1885)

    historically related to · sourced · documented

  • Katana is historically related to Sword.

    Chamberlain’s Swords article seats the katana as the long single-edged sword of the samurai pair — long-sword speech, not the shorter wakizashi alone.

    from Basil Hall Chamberlain · Things Japanese, 1890 (5th ed. 1905)

    historically related to · sourced · documented

  • Wakizashi is historically related to Sword.

    Chamberlain’s Swords article seats the wakizashi as the companion short sword of the daishō pair — short-sword speech, not the katana alone.

    from Basil Hall Chamberlain · Things Japanese, 1890 (5th ed. 1905)

    historically related to · sourced · documented

  • Tanto is historically related to Sword.

    Chamberlain’s Swords notes seat the tantō as the dagger-length blade of Japanese side-arms — dagger speech, not a full katana.

    from Basil Hall Chamberlain · Things Japanese, 1890 (5th ed. 1905)

    historically related to · sourced · documented

  • Talwar is historically related to Sword.

    Hobson’s Tulwaur article seats talwār / tarwār as a sabre — curved side-arm speech, not a kukri knife dump.

    from Henry Yule and A. C. Burnell (ed. William Crooke) · Hobson-Jobson, 1886 (new ed. 1903)

    historically related to · sourced · documented

  • Bread is historically related to Sword.

    In Watson’s Biblical and Theological Dictionary, Ahimelech at Nob gives David the shewbread and the sword of Goliath that had been deposited in the tabernacle when David flees from Saul.

    from Richard Watson · A Biblical and Theological Dictionary, 1831–32 (Gutenberg #53884)

    historically related to · sourced · documented

European folklore

  • Sword (heraldry) is historically related to Sword.

    Boutell’s English Heraldry treats the sword as a common upright or crossed charge in English armory. A named sword-heraldry historically related to the sword, not the weapon-object dump alone and not orion-sword asterism.

    from Charles Boutell · English Heraldry, 1867

    historically related to · sourced · documented

  • Cutlass is historically related to Sword.

    Falconer’s Dictionary seats the cutlass as the short curved shipboard sword of boarding and deck work — a naval sword kin, not a land sabre dump and not sword as an undifferentiated blade. A named cutlass in that marine arms speech.

    from William Falconer · Universal Dictionary of the Marine, 1769

    historically related to · sourced · documented

  • Estoc is historically related to Sword.

    Meyrick’s Inquiry seats the estoc among stiff thrusting swords made for the gaps of plate. A named estoc in that antient-armour speech, not a rapier civilian thrust alone, not a falchion cut, and not a claymore.

    from Samuel Rush Meyrick · A Critical Inquiry into Antient Armour, 1824

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  • Rapier is historically related to Sword.

    Meyrick’s Inquiry seats the rapier among slender thrusting swords of later civilian and early-modern European arms. A named rapier in that antient-armour speech, not an estoc plate-thrust twin alone, not a sabre curve, and not a falchion.

    from Samuel Rush Meyrick · A Critical Inquiry into Antient Armour, 1824

    historically related to · sourced · documented

  • Claymore is historically related to Sword.

    Meyrick’s Inquiry seats the claymore among great Scottish two-hand swords of later Highland and border speech. A named claymore in that antient-armour speech, not a falchion single-edge, not a sabre, and not a rapier.

    from Samuel Rush Meyrick · A Critical Inquiry into Antient Armour, 1824

    historically related to · sourced · documented

  • Falchion is historically related to Sword.

    Meyrick’s Inquiry seats the falchion among single-edged cutting swords of later medieval European arms. A named falchion in that antient-armour speech, not a sabre cavalry curve alone, not a claymore, and not an estoc thrust.

    from Samuel Rush Meyrick · A Critical Inquiry into Antient Armour, 1824

    historically related to · sourced · documented

  • Sabre is historically related to Sword.

    Meyrick’s Inquiry seats the sabre among curved cutting swords of later European cavalry and light-horse speech. A named sabre in that antient-armour speech, not a falchion medieval single-edge alone, not a cutlass naval twin (already Falconer-met), and not a rapier.

    from Samuel Rush Meyrick · A Critical Inquiry into Antient Armour, 1824

    historically related to · sourced · documented

  • Messer is historically related to Sword.

    Meyrick’s Inquiry can seat the messer among single-edged German knife-swords of later medieval civilian and arms speech. A named messer in that antient-armour neighborhood, not a falchion French/English form alone and not a sabre.

    from Samuel Rush Meyrick · A Critical Inquiry into Antient Armour, 1824

    historically related to · sourced · documented

Chinese tradition

  • Dao is historically related to Sword.

    Bushell’s metalwork notes seat the dāo among Chinese single-edged sabres — sabre speech, not a straight jiàn alone.

    from Stephen W. Bushell · Chinese Art, 1904–1906 (2nd ed. 1909)

    historically related to · sourced · documented

sources

  • Poetic Edda · Anonymous (Eddic poems); Carolyne Larrington (translation)

    The Poetic Edda, trans. Carolyne Larrington.

  • Aeneid · Virgil

    Virgil, Aeneid.

  • Description of Greece · Pausanias

    Pausanias, Description of Greece.

  • Histories · Herodotus

    Herodotus, Histories.

  • The Mabinogion · Anonymous (Welsh prose); Sioned Davies (translation)

    The Mabinogion, trans. Sioned Davies.

  • Kojiki · Ō no Yasumaro (compiler); Donald L. Philippi (translation)

    Donald L. Philippi, Kojiki.

  • The Rigveda · Stephanie W. Jamison and Joel P. Brereton (translation)

    Stephanie W. Jamison and Joel P. Brereton, The Rigveda: The Earliest Religious Poetry of India.

  • Iliad · Homer

    Homer, Iliad.

  • Epic of Gilgamesh

    The Epic of Gilgamesh, Standard Babylonian version (flood tablet; underworld material).

  • Symbols and Emblems of Early and Mediaeval Christian Art · Louisa Twining

    Louisa Twining, Symbols and Emblems of Early and Mediaeval Christian Art.

  • English Heraldry · Charles Boutell

    Charles Boutell, English Heraldry (1867).

  • Universal Dictionary of the Marine · William Falconer

    William Falconer, An Universal Dictionary of the Marine (1769).

  • A Critical Inquiry into Antient Armour · Samuel Rush Meyrick

    Samuel Rush Meyrick, A Critical Inquiry into Antient Armour (1824).

  • Things Japanese · Basil Hall Chamberlain

    Basil Hall Chamberlain, Things Japanese (5th ed. 1905).

  • Chinese Art · Stephen W. Bushell

    Stephen W. Bushell, Chinese Art (V&A handbook, 1904–1906).

  • Hobson-Jobson · Henry Yule and A. C. Burnell (ed. William Crooke)

    Henry Yule and A. C. Burnell, Hobson-Jobson (new ed. William Crooke, 1903).

  • A Biblical and Theological Dictionary · Richard Watson

    Richard Watson, A Biblical and Theological Dictionary.