What do y'all think of this?

wow, I didn't know anyone was still making blades out of bronze! Incredible craftsmanship, and where can you even find bronze blanks?

T.O.
 
Phillip Patton said:
I just made a companion dagger too. 6" blade:

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020614-2.jpg


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I was doing an image search on "bronze dagger" and came across this. I'm researching the biblical story of Ehud's assassination of Eglon in Judges 3:15-22, and I have good reason to believe the weapon used probably looked a lot like this (minus the handle wrapping). What is the total length of the dagger?
 
Welcome to Bladeforums!

This thread is almost 3 years old, so Phillip may not be watching it anymore. He did say the blade was 6" and placing a measure against that seems to give another 6" for the handle.
 
Well, I wasn't watching this thread, but Tapatalk was. ;-)

I just looked up the passage you referred to, Elagabalus (always enjoyed that story) and it says his sword was a cubit in length, so actually the blade in the first post of this thread would be closer.
 
Not surprising that a Benjamite would be the first to respond to this post! I had done an impromptu measurement of the blade and the handle, and the handle appeared a tad longer than the blade. I don't know whether that was due to a little perspective distortion from the camera angle, so I wanted to get an accurate measurement.
 
It's probably the perspective. I think I have another of these blades out in the shop. I'll measure it for you tomorrow. But I still think the bigger blade is closer to the one in the Biblical account.
 
Phillip Patton said:
Well, I wasn't watching this thread, but Tapatalk was. ;-)

I just looked up the passage you referred to, Elagabalus (always enjoyed that story) and it says his sword was a cubit in length, so actually the blade in the first post of this thread would be closer.
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The problem is that the passage doesn't use the actual Hebrew word for cubit, but rather a word that is used only once in the Bible, gomed. Some scholars take this as a smaller measurement, perhaps two-thirds of a cubit (12 inches) or something even shorter. Do you still take orders for bronze daggers?
 
Elagabalus said:
The problem is that the passage doesn't use the actual Hebrew word for cubit, but rather a word that is used only once in the Bible, gomed. Some scholars take this as a smaller measurement, perhaps two-thirds of a cubit (12 inches) or something even shorter. Do you still take orders for bronze daggers?
Click to expand...

Would you say that would be the total length, or just the blade?

The one I have is 10-1/8" total, with the blade being about 5-1/2". You're welcome to this one, or I can make another. If you're interested, we should continue the discussion via email. phillip at pattonblades dot com. Thanks!
 
Phillip Patton said:
Would you say that would be the total length, or just the blade?

The one I have is 10-1/8" total, with the blade being about 5-1/2". You're welcome to this one, or I can make another. If you're interested, we should continue the discussion via email. phillip at pattonblades dot com. Thanks!
Click to expand...

I was referring to the total length of the dagger being 12 inches or less. Check your email.
 
Just a little update on my research into this subject. I'm trying to obtain through interlibrary loan an article from the journal Zeitschrift fur Althebraistik titled "gomed in Richter 3,16 oder die Pygmaen im Dschungel der Langenmasse" (gomed in Judges 3:16 or, the Pygmy in the jungle of the length measures) by a scholar named Hartmann. The guy supposedly makes a case that the total length of the dagger was 21 cm, which comes out to about 8 1/4 inches!
 
you got me interested in bronze weapons. according to the illiad, bronze made tough weapons and armor, while iron/steel made keen cutting edges.
 
I was just going to reference the Iliad! Looking at those beauties, I just want to suit up and storm Troy! Sweet blades!
 
Bronze knives and swords were cast , copper with about 10 % tin is typical. Much confusion in comparisons as most compare bronze to steel rather than to iron ! Bronze and iron are similar. For blades of both , many were work hardened on the edges by hammering which sharpened [thinned ] and hardened the metal .

For you DIY types a good bronze is Silicon Bronze , easily found .
 
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