KøbenhavnskeSværdfegereTreAarhundreder_1957

English Summary Revised by John F. Hayward Copenhagen Sword-Cutlers o f three Centuries B y H . D . Schepelern

gentleman’s sword, court- or small-sword. On p. 3 is reproduced a woodcut from Olaus Magnus’ w ork “ Historia de gentibus septen- trionalibus” (Rome, 15 5 5 ); the weapons to the right give an idea o f the three types o f side-arms in question. A set o f swords and knives preserved at Rosenborg and the T oj- husmuseum (Plate 1 ), is dated 1584-86 and was possibly made for King Frederik II by his court sword-cutler, Hermann Gabriel, who, to judge from these weapons, must have been a Saxon or trained in Saxony. Few masters ever had the opportunity o f making such complete sets, and i f such a costly masterpiece was insisted upon, the old masters would have had an effective method o f controlling the growth o f the guild. The records o f the guild o f smiths, extant from 1647 and onwards, give very little in­ formation about the sword-cutlers, so the Royal and other state accounts are our main source o f knowledge in this period. The sword-cutlers mentioned in those sources are probably those o f sufficient importance to have received official commissions ; the names o f the ordinary masters have now passed into oblivion. The official attitude o f the Kings was not CHAPTER I COPENHAGEN SWORD-CUTLERS BEFORE 16 5 6

INTRODUCTION The mediaeval distinction between blade- smiths, hardeners and sword-cutlers could not be maintained in the North. In these coun­ tries, where blades were only produced on a small scale, the whole process o f making a sword would often be undertaken by one single craftsman, the Scandinavian name for whom was “ Sværdsliber” (sword-grinder). About 1400 this word gradually disappeared in favour o f the German word “ Sværdfeger” (sword-cutler) which first came into use in Sleswig and Holstein, the old word “ Sværd­ sliber” disappearing at a later date in N orw ay than in the southern parts o f Scandinavia. Probably the adoption o f the new word, which meant the craftsman who made the hilt and also furnished the sword with scab­ bard, belt and other accessories, gave a more correct idea o f such craftsmen, because very few blades were made in Scandinavia at that time. In Denmark, only the knife-smiths con­ tinued to produce blades, while sword-blades were imported. The oldest statutes o f the guild o f smiths, to which the sword-cutlers belonged, re­ quired a long sword, a long knife or dagger and a “ korde” or sabre as master pieces. It is interesting that the word “ korde” fell into disuse and was re-introduced in the late 1 7 th century with quite another meaning: In Da­ nish the word “ Kaarde” still means a straight