Cold Steel Italian Long Sword – 8 1/2” Grip

The era of the long sword spanned almost three centuries (approximately 1350 to 1650). This, undoubtedly, was because it really worked! It featured a distinctive cruciform hilt and a long, double edged blade and was equally adept at opposing both light and heavily armored foes. You see, its extra long blade offered the reach and leverage for powerful stabbing, cutting and chopping strokes while its long cross guard and heavy pommel were useful for hooking, striking and smashing. When heavy plate armor was encountered, blows with the edge were marginally effective and were often abandoned in favor of a ''Half-Swording'' technique; where one hand grips the hilt and the other the blade to better direct the point in powerful jabs, and to more accurately thrust at the small gaps and joints present in a suit of armor.

Modeled on the Italian concept of sword design, the blade and balance slightly favors thrusting attacks, however, its cutting edges are astonishingly effective too and can deliver some down right ferocious blows. Additionally, its simple cruciform hilt is also all business with a long upturned cross guard, leather-over-wood grip, and a counter balancing fish tail pommel.

Please Note: This product tends to suffer from a slightly loose guard and/or minor cosmetic issues on the blade. For years we have tried quality controlling these issues out, but we are now getting close to 100% of them with some kind of issue. Cold Steel does not consider these problems, so we will no longer try to weed them out. Please keep this in mind when ordering. These issues can not be considered defects, it is simply the quality level Cold Steel provides for this product.