As the old saying goes: "Donde un español no llega con la mano, llega con la punta de su espada". "Where a Spaniard cannot reach with his hand, he reaches with the tip of his sword".
Hahahaahahha its really a reference to the school of fencing '' la verdadera destreza'' (the true dexterity) but now it takes another mean ajajajaja es una referencia que se refiere a la escuela de esgrima ''la verdadera destreza'' pero aqui obtiene otro significado ahahahaha la cual dio nacimiento a la esgrima olimpica actual, lo que no se por que despues como español no entiendo que en la mayoria de obras de ficcion los buenos esgrimistas sean de origen frances :S
@@ArcadiaDSG Los que robaron 'lo vuestro' son los criollos masones que os gobiernan. Los mismos que os vendieron a los anglos para convertiros en sus colonias económicas y desde entonces sí, saqueando vuestras minas para llevar el oro y plata a Inglaterra y después a USA. Esto último creo que no aparece en sus libros de historia. Un saludo.
Pedro, Pedro, Pedro, Pedro, Pè Praticamente il meglio di Santa Fè Pedro, Pedro, Pedro, Pedro, Pè Fidati di me Pedro, Pedro, Pedro, Pedro, Pè Praticamente il meglio di Santa Fè Pedro, Pedro, Pedro, Pedro, Pè Fidati di me
Googling a bit about this, it seems that in the 17th century there was a master swordsmith called Pedro de Lezama (in old Castilian the letter "z" could be a "ç") who used to forge in Bilbao, Toledo and Seville this kind of swords with a shell hilt (or cup). It seems that an important part of this production was exported to the British Isles.
Yes, the Ç was like a Z sound, and X was like J for us. Also, written F in words like "Fermosa" was like a hard H almost a J. Example, "Fermosa dama" is "Hermosa dama" as meaning "Beautiful lady", but we'll speech it as "Jermosa dama". J in castellano is like Jamaica, not John 😂
@@nicosmind3 J in spanish is very difficult to pronounce for an english speaking person and thus it is often written as "kh". For instance, the main pyramid in Egypt is widely known as "Khufu" but it is indeed "Jufu" as egyptians have the same pronuntiation for the J as in Spain as both were inherited from the arab language. Couriously enough in spain we know that pyramid as "Keops" which is the Ptolemaic (Greek) name .
I think is much more simpler than that ç letter is widely used in portuguese. From 1580 to 1640, the Kindom of Portugal was part of the Spanish crown. A portuguese blacksmith from this period could have forged this sword. Usually, it is forgotten tha spanish empire was more than just Spain. Almost every central european nation was once part of the spanish empire, an Italy as well
51 inches blade is my preference; but I'm quite tall at 6' 4''. 45 inches I think is fine as the upper limit for most. You do get a 25 to 30 inch length added in arm so 70 to 82 inch reach depending on clade & user. My arm is 27 inches for a comfortable reach with an English court sword for 78 inches but I prefer English staff or daggers to swords personally as they have far more real world application. English staff transfers to pole arms & bayoneted rifles in fundamentals while daggers-knifes are what you are most likely to face in the world of armaments. Best precaution to a knife is to know knife fighting in my opinion since you know how to use onw then you have a far greater idea of how another will use one to avoid the pointy end some what. Swords are aesthetically pleasing but who is ever going to use one today? It is a weapon of the old guard & officers only really for parade anymore. Your free time to train in armaments is best spent else were then on swordsmanship unless it is a real personal passion as matter of live & limb are best spent on other systems.
@@FiliiMartis My 1/2-sword is fine as unlike most I understand a rapière a big rasper or grater. I assume that what you infer by tight confines though my Italian is modest is best. Still even if one can do narrow play I much prefer shorter blades as who carries a sword but no knife? Pugio or an basket hilt dagger is my taste but if you have an 8 inches of blade or same length of member for the bedroom like myself then what more do you really need? Personally I see no reason for most blades to be more then a cubit as in finger tip to elbow as 20 odd inches is plenty. Swiss dag, Gladius, cutlass, Bilbao etcetera are all 20 inch's long give or take 1/2 a foot. As I said if reach was the objective am English or Spanish court sword is best suited or perhaps an Italian spada even if a tad shorter is more versatile but not my 1st choice. I prefer going over the top or having a far more short manageable blade. What your preference; no reason, just asking?
@@benjaminb505 well usually about foot or 12 inches but yes some get up to 15 inches. Bigger yet still a fixed or flip knife of sailors is a (gully knife) from 12inches/a foot up to 2 foot or 24 inches. flip ones tended to be longer as the handle didn't get in the way of carrying them as a much on deck. every pirate in the age of sail carried a fully knife like most any sensible sailor.
"Where a Spaniard cannot reach with his hand, he reaches with the tip of his sword". That phrase from the quote was uttered by a Spanish ambassador to an arrogant courtier of king Louis XIV in Versailles who had mocked him for his short stature in front of a beautiful lady with a tall rose bush in the gardens path. In fact, he used his blade to get a rose with a smart flourish and offered it as a present to her, enough to get a smile and a blush from the lady. A lot was said time after about what tipe of blade was talking about the ambassador (wink wink, IYKWIM 😏), but no doubt that gentleman would have a sword like that one. Because size matters, but never judge a book by its cover 😁
That’s what we call “espada ropera” in Spain and it was used one-handed while in the other they used a “vizcaína” which was like a dagger, for all of you interested in why Spain was the home of the greatest swordsmans, red Captain Alatriste adventures by Arturo Perez-Reverte.
Can confirm. One time I purchased a sword that was 1.250000000001 vara long. My friends all viciously mocked me and cut ties with me, the pope annulled my marriage and my wife left me, my heirs all spontaneously died, and the king stripped me of all my land and titles. A master swordsman then proceeded to appear out of thin air before outmaneuvering me with his shorter sword and ending my life.
Funnily enough, they kinda went oldschool with that design. A lot of bronze age swords used a similar cross section because with most types of bronze you could only get the blade so long before you _had_ to thicken up the middle for more stability
@@Uryendel i assumed they were referring to the rapier since that's the focus of the video, and i had actually kinda forgotten that the montante made an appearance as well
In Portugal (and most likely in Iberian Peninsula), long rapiers of around that length were called Toledanas or Toledans, because Toledo was most likely a reference place for these just as Konigsbergs (Colichemarde) referred to Konigsberg. They were still being used (illegally) by people in towns well into 1700
@@Nerthos I mean, it’s not in effect anymore. But generally European Monarchs were all ensuing laws to regulate the length of rapiers (and in Spain I recall that Montantes were regulated as well). Portugal issued 3 laws about it in the 16th century, the first limiting OAL to 115cm, and later in 1550 or 1560’s changing that to 115 cm blade length only (even still we have rapiers of forbidden length in Portuguese museums). By 1700’s the King regulated quitos (a short small sword) to some 60-66cm blade length, depending on how palmo was meant at that time
@@Nerthos alcaides (townsguard). Portugal and Iberian Península also had a punishment system that rewarded denoucers. In the rapier case, someone carrying a long rapier would have the weapon confiscated, would have to pay a fine and would have to stay in jail for a few days. Part of the Fine (like a third) was Given to the civilian that denouxed a long rapier being carried
Mr Easton I must say that your move to cooperate with auction houses is a genius one! No single collector can own every interesting sword and this way we get to see so much more new and rare stuff!
When I was learning italian fencing, I remember my rapier being about that long. It was possibly the longest in the salle, but I remember it felt like it just naturally fit me. I'm average height with average reach, but I had an immediate advantage in duels because of the reach the blade gave me. I remember some smaller partners getting annoyed that I could reach them while they were a good 1-2 feet away from reaching me :)
@@drewharrison6433 quite possible. It never came up while I was a student there. I wasn't able to advance very much before I had to stop going, so maybe it could have become an issue as I faced more opponents.
THE 2 BEST Tercios (Regiment eqivalent) of the Spanish ARMY were El TERCIO de Sicilia.....and EL TERCIO DE NAPOLES . These Tercios were Marines... AS a Matter of fact the First ever Marines of any Navy.... They were over trained and very well armed for the purpose and Based in Italy the weapons would be very likely done in full by local Italian weapons Craftsmen of the time.
@@SoyTu641 En España se decía , existían toques de “Degüello”, y banderas que indicaban que, en efecto, no se hacían prisioneros. De hecho la de mi perfil es una vieja bandera de “Degüello” de tiempos de la guerra contra Napoleón
@@Andreas-gh6is why parry if you can just step out of range? Especially if the person is holding the two-handed in two hands that reduces the range even more compared to an outstretched arm thrusting a rapier.
@@NihongoWakannai you've never been in a sword fight, right? You can't just "step out of range". The enemy will follow, or close, and the more range the more time the enemy has to react. Rapiers fight against rapiers or similar weapons, where both fighters do their most not to get hit, because even small wounds are not survivable. Like in a knife fight, the winner gets to go to the hospital, except back in the day, he'd just die too. But because of that dynamic, fighters would be quite reluctant to step into each others range. Broadswords are entirely different beasts, you can't dance around with those and with that kind of weight you have to use force and momentum to beat down the opponent's guard. And most likely, someone with a heavy sword will also wear armor, at least against piercing attacks, to avoid being "tickled" to death by a much more nimble rapier or the like. Therefor I don't think you'd bring a rapier to a broadsword fight, the broadsword will just beat you down.
What a fabulous sword! I wonder what it sold for? I was hoping there would be more from the auction site and here it is. I am actually speechless, which is rare for me, at the beauty and size of this beauty. Your delight and enthusiasm at these things is infectious. Thank you for this glimpse at this wonderful sword.
@@kasnitch Oh, thank you for getting back to me. I never thought to look in the description; I was thinking of going to the Auction site later and taking a look. I appreciate your efforts to provide me with this info. Cheers!
I wonder what that sword cost fresh out of the forge during its time. Converted into modern currency and adjusted for inflation. Do you think it cost more or less than the 6000 pounds it was auctioned for now?
@@BunjiKugashira42 In my limited understanding of History, I have often been shocked by what the conversion factors were from the medieval period. For instance I think it was one of Henry 8 festivals or something cost millions of pounds in todays money corresponding pretty close to what the same event would cost today. My uneducated guess is the original manufacture price equivalent was less than this action price because the rarity inflates the "value" however it is obviously a fabulous sword. This was an upper class sword for a wealthy man - thousands of pounds in todays money I would venture Less than the auction price but still a lot ... 3, 4 , 5 thousand pounds currency equivalent? But what do I know?. Thanks for the reply. Cheers!
"Can you believe Pedro? We need to stop inviting him to parties. Every time he turns his stupid sword keeps whacking people in the shins and I've seen three servers trip over that thing."
Really I can only see three realistic scenarios for drawing this with intent to do harm: 1) You detach the scabbard and use the sword to fling it off. 2) The scabbard has a slit on the top for half its length. 3) You were never meant to wear the scabbard, your second brings you the sword, and you draw it out with him holding the scabbard.
They didn't wear this swords with scabbards. They wore them "affixed" to the belt, along the capes (Thus "Ropera", which would translate roughly as: "Of the clothes") (If they had scabbards, it would have been the situation you described, which is not really practical for a self-defense weapon XD)
I remember at the local university, they had a bunch of 34ish inch rapiers and one 39-40 inch one they called "the compensator" derisively, mocking, mostly in fun, any guy who chose it. So, I happened to buy a 29 inch rapier because it was on hand and when they asked why so short, I told them I was compensating... I actually wouldn't call it a "rapier" as it had a bit wider and stiffer blade, more like a thinner broadsword, but had a swept hilt, so...
@@MacanWigit I guess you call it that, or something between a broadsword and rapier. I just picked it up with a couple of other swords while on vacation from a small sword maker in Mississippi, forget the name.
First, sorry for my bad english. Maybe this sword was owned by a "valentón", a kind of "bullies" about who I've read (in Cervantes novel "Rinconete y Cortadillo" appear for example). Those "valentones" were known by wearing hugely long swords in order to impress or frighten people, maybe as a way to avoid being challenged to a duel or maybe to look as more dangerous than really they were (a today's comparisson would be those guys in the 90's who used too big clothes to imitate the image of real gangsters just came out from jail). They were part of the underworld of thieves and little "gangters" of that time, some times ex-soldiers, some times only offenders who tried to pass as impoverished lesser nobles. Hope I've helped you to understand a probable origin of that sword.
@@mpetersen6 Orbital bombardment might be a touch overkill for the duel scenario....but a missile barrage could be as well idk 😇 the inevitable escalation of arms problem 😎
@@SMac86 Except they don't, the Great Epee in Elden Ring has a very reasonable thrusting attack and a sideswipe cut which is less reasonable but not terrible. The proportions are what is silly in Elden Ring. Generally, Elden Ring has a lot of good attack animations that fit most of the swords you use. Basically just the greatsword and halberd movesets are badly done and they're dumb because the character seems unable to wield the weapons at all properly (except the knight greatswords). Or the Guardian Swordspear moveset which is weird anf baffling fantasy stuff. Do you have a specific weapon in mind that uses bad animations?
I was thinking the same thing, "How can you even beat that rapier?" "Well, you approach quickly, evading the first blow and cutting the distance." "Isn't that just a spear?"
That blade alone is longer than my longsword with about 132cm. This is absurd. There is no way a sword like that can be drawn in a single motion. Being myself 193cm tall I already have to reach a little to unsheathe my longsword with "only" 100cm of blade length. Unless this one had some sort of especial scabbard, I struggle to see how one could draw it in a single quick motion.
@@auturgicflosculator2183 There isn't a rule, but I'm going by the idea that the rapier was mostly a self-defense weapon for civilian contexts, in which draw speed could save your life. Of course, this might be merely a craftsman's skill statement, or ceremonial piece, which would throw out the window any need for quick drawing.
I imagine that the cutting capacity definitely shouldn't be underestimated. The length of the blade almost certainly means you can deliver pretty devastating tip cuts since you can really accelerate the tip of the blade.
I heard about a super long kind of rapier that in Spain was called "mata-amigos" (friend-killer). I suppose because of the dishonourable advantage it gave you -provided, that is, you managed to draw its full length before your enemy's shorter sword had spitted you. Also, unless you were a giant, you would have to drag its tip ungainly about town, a most uncool thing to do
You know the rapier's blade is long when it makes a montante look like a regular longsword. Polish "koncerz husarski" (I'll leave the name in Polish; it's a long estoc-spike on a sabre hilt) has about 128cm long blades. This rapier reminded me of that, and I wonder if it was not intended to be used in the same way, from horseback. The pommel needs to be this large (unlike more typical Spanish pommels) to balance the blade. Funny enough, the old smith copied the forged balled pommel from Regenyei. 😏 It may be Italian for the Spanish market, especially if Brescia is involved. I have never seen a Spanish blade like this. But I have seen Italian side-swords with this type of central ridge and very thin blade edges, and they were from Brescia. Last, why do people call it a cup-hilt? This is a shell-hilt in my eyes. I love how the Spanish use the bars to fill the empty spaces around the shells. And such an exquisite motive, I love it! Sold for £6k. 😅 Matt is in his right to use a 114cm rapier. I order a 114cm one myself. What's the point of getting a rapier if you're not going for length. Get a smallsword if you want a compact thruster. 😄
Koncerze to były praktycznie pręty do walki z konia gdy kopia pękła, ciężkie by zapewnić sztywność, często bez ostrza, ten rapier jest zbyt giętki by go przypominać, widać że był zaprojektowany z myślą o zręcznym fechtunku i pojedynkach w cywilu, mimo długości. Wg mnie inna sprawa po całości niż koncerz.
@@titanscerw Maybe, but you will annoy a lot of people going about the town with such a long blade (some alleys in old towns are narrower than the rapier's length😅). Basically, you'll do it once or twice to show off your new purchase, but you'll probably give up on it and go for a more practical size weapon in no time. Or if you're English, you'll annoy the queen, get all blades to be cut down to about 32 inches or and ruin it for the rest of us.🤣 It's funny cuz England hasn't got out the mentality of making the life harder for fencer (and collectors) to this day. 😔
@@vedymin1 I understand what you mean. But the cross cross-section made me think of that. It results in a stiff blade. But you may be right that, not as stiff as a diamond-cross-section shaped rod made to withstand cavalry charges. Btw, I didn't know that Koncers were just a backup to the lance. On the civilian vs battlefield use... how would you know? People bought their own weapons for the most part. I wouldn't dismiss any options as a possibility.
@@FiliiMartis I say that becouse it would be a poor choice for the battlefield for the most part imho, as most rapiers are (besides the "war rapiers" which are basically sideswords) You could take it with you to the battlefield but you would most likely be poorly served by it, no one is stopping you tho :) This is the problem with rapiers, they are mostly thrust oriented swords, but their length often makes them somewhat wobbly, good enough for a civilian setting with not much in the way of resistive materials to punch through to stab or cut smn. Also they are optimized for the 1v1 duel/self defence scenario, they are a very directional weapon becouse of mostly stabbing, in a melee you want to cut much more, it helps in defending and offending from multiple sides, keeps the blade free and moving etc. So a rapier would give you both poor stabbing and cutting performance in war while also being hard to oppose other battlefield weapons, possibly getting stuck after a thrust, while smn attacks you from the side and being potentially hard to maneuver in a formation or tighter spaces.
It's either an absurdly long rapier or a strange short spear 🤣😂 I can't process how an average 17th-century Western European man (5' 6 ft/1.67 m) carried it; the blade alone was 80% of his height. It must've been a Renaissance Shaq running around.
Various rapier masters did say to have a rapier that comes under the arm. As described by Girard Thibault, that means that the pommel reaches the armpit with the point on the ground. (Thibault thought this excessive.) But this rapier is even longer than that measure, unless the wielder was quite tall indeed.
It would take a very tall person to conveniently draw this rapier from the hip. Girard Thibault wrote that the cross should reach the navel with the point on the ground, & that length already becomes a touch tricky to draw quickly & smoothly.
Yeah, but talking about length makes me think of that. Length becomes a hinderance when worn and sudden self defense scenarios, can be a disadvantage. In dueling, which HEMA is basically fixated on, it isn’t cus it was probably frowned upon to jump your opponent and shiv him before he pulls his sword out.
@@Nerthos You basically be a moron not to . But there are things shorter more robust blades can do that a dagger can't. Not to say this sword is bad, just that HEMA rules basiccally give an ahistorical advantage to super long weapons cus people do tourneys in cleared out spaces with swords already drawn. The reality is that people lived with their weapons and you don't get dictate the perfect conditions which you use them most of the time.
Pedro de Leçama is Pedro from Leçama. The old Ç is now Z in spanish. Lezama is a spanish town in the basque country, on this epoque a famouse arms made place.
Pedro Lecama was a famous swordmaker in Toledo in the 17th century, so yes Spanish not Italian. Pedro is in the "Nomina de Palomares" book from the 18th century about Toledo swormakers. El espadero Pedro de Lecama (o Lezama) labró en Toledo y Sevilla en el siglo XVII y ocupa el número 84 en la nómina de Palomares.
Seeing this sword built by Pedro de Lezama, it is easy to understand why the Spanish won the first battle with the Japanese. When the samurai reached the correct attack distance he was already dead.
Esa espada que tienes en la mano , es como un Ferrari mezclado con un Rolls royce y un Mercedes 600 .Aparte de esa preciosa espada estaba la escuela de saber manejar eso y su nombre es ''Destreza'' .En el Siglo XVI en todo el Imperio Español ir con eso , debía de imponer mucho respeto al que te quisiera retar y se lo pensaría 2 veces .Aparte como en el viejo Oeste , ibas cogiendo fama de un virtuoso en el manejo de ese pedazo de obra de arte .Tendría que dar mucho respeto verte a un tío por la calle con eso , aparte llevaban sus largas capas donde esconderlas y sus grandes sombreros para tapar su identidad , lo cual unido a calles oscuras y con poca luz .De noche , solo se atreverían a salir a la calle los valientes y con la mejor espada y la mejor destreza.
Pls look at the mocking comments. You can understand why in Spain, Portugal, Italy and all of Latin America they look down on the English and people from the USA. Note that in these countries their feeling of imperial reunification against the Anglo-Saxons is increasingly stronger and that their language does not stop spreading throughout the countries. If at some point in their history they become a single empire again you will see "the laughter"
I clicked on the video for the clickbaity title and stayed for the calmly, yet excitedly delivered content. Also I'm glad you still like long stiff things.
There are types of basket-hilted swords that look like asymmetrical swept hilts with oversized knuckle bows and more coverage on one side. It's all about usage; a cup-hilted rapier is mostly a thrusting weapon that is held and attacks horizontally, while a basket-hilted sword is held more vertically and is expected to also cut, so it requires more protection on the side facing forward.
Can you do a video about how a sword like that would be worn? How high up would you wear that? Can you even wear it, or is it always out? Would they use a scabbard? If so, how would you draw it? What kind of quick release mechanisms could they employ to attach it to their person back then?
I think it would have to hang low to buy you all the arm reach advantage it can, plus so you can also pull the scabbard in the opposite direction. It would also have to hang almost perpendicularly to the ground ?
Triangular suspension. Two attachment points on the Scabbard, meeting at a ring to form a triangle. The ring is then hooked onto a high-riding belt. This results in the pommel of the weapon being far forward, which allows you to walk around with it admittedly not much comfort. There's no comfortable way to wear a sword that long. To draw the sword you can either unhook the ring and free the Scabbard from your belt entirely or hang on to the Scabbard and lift and move it around via the Triangular straps. When actually fighting you would almost certainly want to discard the scabbard. I can't recall if this form of suspension has an actual name. You can find videos about various forms of suspension on UA-cam
The delicate ornamentation of the guard reminds me of the reliefs that adorn the capitals of the columns of the Visigothic church of San Pedro de La Nave in Toledo.
En epoca de Felipe II llego a España una embajada del Cipango, Japon que desgraciadamente perdió rl oro que traia como regalo en una tormenta,pero vino un maestro de armas que se batio en duelo amistoso con la primera espada del Reino de España
I'm skeptical. Rob Childs, one of the best rapier fencers alive today, recommends using a blade of half one's height plus three inches. Girard Thibault wrote that the cross should reach the navel with the point on the ground, & described longer rapiers as awkward to wear, draw, & fight with.
Absolutely gorgeous! I wish I wasn't a poor bc I would love to own something so beautiful. Matt, you definitely have to get one of your contacts to make reproductions of this particular Rapier bc I really want one and a repro is the only way I'll ever be able to get one. 🙏🙏🙏🙏
I once saw a swordsmith explaining the different uses of the weapons and he showed a very long rapier with crossguard but no basket hilt. He explained that it was made for the camp followers, who after a battle searched the the field for survivors. Imagine being an armored fighter or knight injured on the field, barely able to move. On comes a woman with such a weapon, places the tip between the parts of your armor while stayin out of reach of you. Poised to press on the crossguard with her whole bodyweight, askin a single worded question: "Ransom?"
This thing is awesome! I think it will fetch quite a pretty penny. The artwork is exquisite. I agree, I really would love to fence with it. I'm tall (6'3"), I think I could make it work.
If you do get a chance to fence with a remarkablely long rapier please post a video. A friend insists that anything longer than 32 inches is too difficult for precision, which seems unlikely to me but I am not enough swordsman to prove anything.
@@lornemarr Sadly, my rapier fencing techniques are not up to snuff either. I'm more of a one-and-half-hand basic swordsman. I just would like to try it, to see if it is still balanced and how fast and accurate I could move the point. I think the blade becomes much more important here, as you can still slice with it. Not sure if slashing is a thing with a rapier this long. I'd like to see a pro handle this thing.
The spanish at the time considers blades longer than 5/4 vara (41in): -Are offensive, immodest, excessive, and contemptible. -Will damage your own reputation by decreasing the perception of your valor for 5 generations. -Cause friends to be too ashamed to speak on your behalf, enemies to disparage you, and neutral parties to favor your adversary. -In losing, having chosen a longer weapon will cause your guilt to be worsened and the sentence and punishment is increased (judicially speaking). -Cause you to be viewed as effeminate for not confronting your adversary on equal terms. -Are regarded by the the people who are praiseworthy as detestable, and they condemn it. So most likely a sword for display and collection only.
Certain Italian masters like Ridolfo Capo Ferro wrote that the sword (rapier) should reach from the ground to the wielder's armpit. That's about three-quarters of a person's height, depending on their exact proportions. If the owner of this rapier were quite tall, it'd fit that measure. & it's certainly possible some individual wanted a longer sword than any established style (that we know of) recommended.
Oh boi. Mr. "Dual wielding never existed" discovered Spain, at last. Wait until he finds out about the Vizcaína sword, and how Spanish swordsmen fought with one in each hand.
Pedro de Laçama - the cedilla makes is an s/z sound. It means Pedro "from La Zama" (cf. Don Quixote de la Mancha - the character was from La Mancha). It probably refers to the modern day town of Lezama in northern Spain, which would be the "surname" of the smith indicating where he was originally from, not where it was necessarily forged.
Thanks, very interesting. The inscription that appears on the rapier is probably PEDRO D LECAMA. This person, the swordsmith Pedro de Lecama (or Lezama) actually worked in Toledo and Seville in the 17th century.
"Pedro Lecama" -> Lecama would be writen Lezama in today's Spanish (C was commonly used for Z or C sounds indistinctively centuries ago, before the foundation of the Royal Spanish Academy (RAE)). Lezama is a town in Northern Spain, and also a common name of Basque nobelty, so there you have: as you said it is most probably a Spanish rapier
@@mrr3808 cuando las le guas no estaban estandarizadas, se escribia lecama, lesama, lezama o leçama indistintamente, aunque se referirse a la misma persona
A captain in a company of "hijosdalgo" (some kind of low-nobility military brotherhood) named Pedro de Lezama was active during the chronology you mention. That Pedro could have been the owner of that rapier! P.S. I'm an early modern historian, although specialised in galleys ;)
A sword like this is made with the king's gold, that is, by a series of blacksmiths on the payroll, and this model is surely made by Pedro de Lezama, a blacksmith who, if he had had an English surname, would be your swordmaster on your chachi list. reinterpreting history. If you don't know where Lezama is, it is a Basque town near Bilbo, near another port that may sound more familiar, Renteria where Blas de Lezo was born, that doesn't sound familiar either, as English memory tends to be elusive for its own sake.
I dont want go be rich to buy expensive cars or Apple products, I want to be rich to buy swords and other medieval weapons and decorate my house like a damn museum
This rapier is N U T S, absolutely beautiful, and what an interesting blade! A beauty! I had the luck to measure another monstruous rapier some years ago, it is displayed in the Écouen castle in France (Musée Renaissance). It is probably german and around 1590, and it also has a 135cm blade from the cross (diamond cross-section). What an incredibly enormous thing. It weighs like 1,4kg, so it isn't so heavy compared to other swords. A stunningly cool experience.
Pedro went to an I-Ai-Do-class to learn how to draw his sword in the blink of an eye. And he did it! Only, from then on, it took him about 10 seconds to blink with his eyes.
Pedro de Leçama (Lezama in modern spelling) is a well known bladesmith that worked in Bilbao, Toledo and Seville n the XVII Century. His name appears in the "Nomina de Palomares" a 18th Century books about Toledo's swordsmiths. Apparently born Orduña in 1483. It is possible that the blade was his and the rest made by oter crafstman.
@@mrr3808 Que cuñado eres colega ¿Siempre? Échale un ojo a cualquier documento antiguo, por ejemplo en la colección documental del Archivo Municipal de Orduña, y verás como lo escribían.
From most of the comments I have reviewed from my commentary, most have presumed that this rapier was an everyday carry. Clearly impractical. as an analogy think how some people today own more than one pistol: would you pair a "battlefield blaster" with your tuxedo when a PPK in your cummerbund would suffice? It is said that George Washington owned at least 17 swords in his life some for use on the battlefield, state dress, favorite everyday use, etc. I believe this rapier is clearly a specialty weapon, possibly for dueling personally or for use by protégées. In context of its time, dueling was a serious social business, not taken lightly.
Pedro's enemies thought he was small, but actually he was just far away when he poked them.
Sir Pedro declined a lance and still won the joust.
It is hard to tell if Pedro's rapier is spanish or italian. He left it in spain when he went on a journey, but the tip reached all the way to italy.
@@MH-yp6wg The blade was forged by the finest smiths in Toledo and Maniago... at the same time
...¿Is that you, Padre Theodore?
We conquered America and Filipinas from Castile. We just needed the galeones to bring the resources to home.
As the old saying goes: "Donde un español no llega con la mano, llega con la punta de su espada".
"Where a Spaniard cannot reach with his hand, he reaches with the tip of his sword".
Hahahaahahha its really a reference to the school of fencing '' la verdadera destreza'' (the true dexterity) but now it takes another mean ajajajaja
es una referencia que se refiere a la escuela de esgrima ''la verdadera destreza'' pero aqui obtiene otro significado ahahahaha la cual dio nacimiento a la esgrima olimpica actual, lo que no se por que despues como español no entiendo que en la mayoria de obras de ficcion los buenos esgrimistas sean de origen frances :S
@@spliffmunoz481 porque lo roban todo también 😂😂, como la mahonesa, que se la conoce como maYonesa por ellos
ArcadiaDSG ....french stole all....Spain was a world empire. France a world bluff😂
@@ArcadiaDSG Los que robaron 'lo vuestro' son los criollos masones que os gobiernan. Los mismos que os vendieron a los anglos para convertiros en sus colonias económicas y desde entonces sí, saqueando vuestras minas para llevar el oro y plata a Inglaterra y después a USA. Esto último creo que no aparece en sus libros de historia. Un saludo.
con la punta de la polla diras
Imagine the skill of the Master bladesmith who put that on paper and calculated how to make it all work. Peace of art! ❤
Toledo's artwork. Some of the best of the World.
Generations of practical knowledge, combined decades of hard work and learning.
I doubt he (and it probably was a he) put it on paper. I’d wager he just forged by feel
This must be custom made for a specific person, i wonder why the person chose this lengh for the blade.
@@gilde915 taller than average?
Pedro de Lezama was a Spanish sword maker ("Leçama" as written in 17th century Spanish)
Pedro, Pedro, Pedro, Pedro, Pè
Praticamente il meglio di Santa Fè
Pedro, Pedro, Pedro, Pedro, Pè
Fidati di me
Pedro, Pedro, Pedro, Pedro, Pè
Praticamente il meglio di Santa Fè
Pedro, Pedro, Pedro, Pedro, Pè
Fidati di me
“Sir, we have arrived for the duel yet you do not carry a sword??”
*my three servants come bearing a comically long rapier*
You hold that multicrew machine of a sword out: Now...En Garde, ruffian ! May the best man win ! 🐸
Yeah, there's a comedy sketch here.
@@johnstuartkeller5244 sounds like monty python XD
@@hraefn1821 that or basically the sword equivalent of the episode of yosemite sam vs bugs bunny when they start upgunning each other
"That is not a sword! It may as well as be a spear!"
"A rose doesn't cease to be a rose just because it's the size of a hortensia... have at thee!"
Googling a bit about this, it seems that in the 17th century there was a master swordsmith called Pedro de Lezama (in old Castilian the letter "z" could be a "ç") who used to forge in Bilbao, Toledo and Seville this kind of swords with a shell hilt (or cup). It seems that an important part of this production was exported to the British Isles.
Yes, the Ç was like a Z sound, and X was like J for us. Also, written F in words like "Fermosa" was like a hard H almost a J. Example, "Fermosa dama" is "Hermosa dama" as meaning "Beautiful lady", but we'll speech it as "Jermosa dama". J in castellano is like Jamaica, not John 😂
@@p.s.9658don't you mean J is like the English H (but said with more throat) cause the J in John and Jamaica are both the same in English
@@nicosmind3 J in spanish is very difficult to pronounce for an english speaking person and thus it is often written as "kh". For instance, the main pyramid in Egypt is widely known as "Khufu" but it is indeed "Jufu" as egyptians have the same pronuntiation for the J as in Spain as both were inherited from the arab language. Couriously enough in spain we know that pyramid as "Keops" which is the Ptolemaic (Greek) name .
@@pisotones2348Los griegos también usaban el fonema J, que hace siglos se representaba en español cómo X.
I think is much more simpler than that
ç letter is widely used in portuguese. From 1580 to 1640, the Kindom of Portugal was part of the Spanish crown. A portuguese blacksmith from this period could have forged this sword.
Usually, it is forgotten tha spanish empire was more than just Spain. Almost every central european nation was once part of the spanish empire, an Italy as well
-Manolo, you cannot carry a spear in the tabern
-We will see
THank you, you got a laught out of me.
Gracias, me has arrancado una risa.
- How long do you want your rapier to be?
- Yes.
51 inches blade is my preference; but I'm quite tall at 6' 4''.
45 inches I think is fine as the upper limit for most.
You do get a 25 to 30 inch length added in arm so 70 to 82 inch reach depending on clade & user.
My arm is 27 inches for a comfortable reach with an English court sword for 78 inches but I prefer English staff or daggers to swords personally as they have far more real world application.
English staff transfers to pole arms & bayoneted rifles in fundamentals while daggers-knifes are what you are most likely to face in the world of armaments.
Best precaution to a knife is to know knife fighting in my opinion since you know how to use onw then you have a far greater idea of how another will use one to avoid the pointy end some what.
Swords are aesthetically pleasing but who is ever going to use one today?
It is a weapon of the old guard & officers only really for parade anymore.
Your free time to train in armaments is best spent else were then on swordsmanship unless it is a real personal passion as matter of live & limb are best spent on other systems.
@@arnijulian6241 51 inches blade, I see... so how's your gioco stretto? No reason, just asking. 😈
@@FiliiMartis My 1/2-sword is fine as unlike most I understand a rapière a big rasper or grater.
I assume that what you infer by tight confines though my Italian is modest is best.
Still even if one can do narrow play I much prefer shorter blades as who carries a sword but no knife?
Pugio or an basket hilt dagger is my taste but if you have an 8 inches of blade or same length of member for the bedroom like myself then what more do you really need?
Personally I see no reason for most blades to be more then a cubit as in finger tip to elbow as 20 odd inches is plenty.
Swiss dag, Gladius, cutlass, Bilbao etcetera are all 20 inch's long give or take 1/2 a foot.
As I said if reach was the objective am English or Spanish court sword is best suited or perhaps an Italian spada even if a tad shorter is more versatile but not my 1st choice.
I prefer going over the top or having a far more short manageable blade.
What your preference; no reason, just asking?
Have you seen hpw big 18th century Spanish pocjetknives were? Some navajas had 15-inch blades! 🔪
@@benjaminb505 well usually about foot or 12 inches but yes some get up to 15 inches.
Bigger yet still a fixed or flip knife of sailors is a (gully knife) from 12inches/a foot up to 2 foot or 24 inches.
flip ones tended to be longer as the handle didn't get in the way of carrying them as a much on deck.
every pirate in the age of sail carried a fully knife like most any sensible sailor.
"Where a Spaniard cannot reach with his hand, he reaches with the tip of his sword". That phrase from the quote was uttered by a Spanish ambassador to an arrogant courtier of king Louis XIV in Versailles who had mocked him for his short stature in front of a beautiful lady with a tall rose bush in the gardens path. In fact, he used his blade to get a rose with a smart flourish and offered it as a present to her, enough to get a smile and a blush from the lady. A lot was said time after about what tipe of blade was talking about the ambassador (wink wink, IYKWIM 😏), but no doubt that gentleman would have a sword like that one. Because size matters, but never judge a book by its cover 😁
The craftsmanship is incredible - what a smith!
That’s what we call “espada ropera” in Spain and it was used one-handed while in the other they used a “vizcaína” which was like a dagger, for all of you interested in why Spain was the home of the greatest swordsmans, red Captain Alatriste adventures by Arturo Perez-Reverte.
That's the blade that the Destreza masters said would singlehandedly ruin your life, make your friends abandon you, etc...
Wasn't that George Silver?
@@Vlad_Tepes_III George Silver is turning in his grave at the mere mention of this thing.
@@Vlad_Tepes_III I got it from a translation of Pacheco de Narváez, I think.
Can confirm. One time I purchased a sword that was 1.250000000001 vara long. My friends all viciously mocked me and cut ties with me, the pope annulled my marriage and my wife left me, my heirs all spontaneously died, and the king stripped me of all my land and titles. A master swordsman then proceeded to appear out of thin air before outmaneuvering me with his shorter sword and ending my life.
La razón es porque una espada así "excede la marca": su excesiva longitud la hacia ilegal, razón por la que portarla te podía arruinar la vida.
I'd never ever have thought I'd see a rapier that outlengths a montante, yet here we are. Thank you so much for sharing, Matt!
that blade shape is remarkable. Incredible craftsmanship and skill must've gone into forging
Funnily enough, they kinda went oldschool with that design. A lot of bronze age swords used a similar cross section because with most types of bronze you could only get the blade so long before you _had_ to thicken up the middle for more stability
Indeed, forging a blade that long and fine must have required extraordinary skill and possibly more than a few attempts.
Therapist: the spanish zweihander isn't real, it cant hurt you.
The spanish zweihander:
and it's actually a one-hander 😭 what a menace
@@swag_tortoise look behind him, there is a massive zweihander
@@Uryendel i assumed they were referring to the rapier since that's the focus of the video, and i had actually kinda forgotten that the montante made an appearance as well
*Unohander
Mandoble in spanish
That sword must be 400 years old and is still in excellent shape..
usually they're refurbished for sales
In Portugal (and most likely in Iberian Peninsula), long rapiers of around that length were called Toledanas or Toledans, because Toledo was most likely a reference place for these just as Konigsbergs (Colichemarde) referred to Konigsberg. They were still being used (illegally) by people in towns well into 1700
Toledo, capital del acero ❤
I believe that ban is a very stupid law that should go away.
@@Nerthos I mean, it’s not in effect anymore. But generally European Monarchs were all ensuing laws to regulate the length of rapiers (and in Spain I recall that Montantes were regulated as well). Portugal issued 3 laws about it in the 16th century, the first limiting OAL to 115cm, and later in 1550 or 1560’s changing that to 115 cm blade length only (even still we have rapiers of forbidden length in Portuguese museums). By 1700’s the King regulated quitos (a short small sword) to some 60-66cm blade length, depending on how palmo was meant at that time
@@pedrogaiao8527 What is stopping you from carrying a comically long rapier around then
@@Nerthos alcaides (townsguard). Portugal and Iberian Península also had a punishment system that rewarded denoucers. In the rapier case, someone carrying a long rapier would have the weapon confiscated, would have to pay a fine and would have to stay in jail for a few days. Part of the Fine (like a third) was Given to the civilian that denouxed a long rapier being carried
Get a few guys with these rapiers and you got yourself a *phalanx*
Bassically just More phalanx like Spanish Rodeleros (rapier and buckler with half armor troops)
*pike block 😂
If the name is Pedro Lecama, it's very possible that he's from Lezama, a little town in the Basque Country
Actually, he was apparently born Orduña in 1483.
@@Boredoutofmywitshow was he born in the XV century if this weapon was from XVII century 🗿
@@ibairementeria people back then used to live more because there was no internet
@@Jorgerally35 probably because he was Basque 😤
@@ibairementeria Probablemente utilizarian su nombre mucho tiempo despues, osea REPLICAS.
Mr Easton I must say that your move to cooperate with auction houses is a genius one! No single collector can own every interesting sword and this way we get to see so much more new and rare stuff!
When I was learning italian fencing, I remember my rapier being about that long. It was possibly the longest in the salle, but I remember it felt like it just naturally fit me. I'm average height with average reach, but I had an immediate advantage in duels because of the reach the blade gave me. I remember some smaller partners getting annoyed that I could reach them while they were a good 1-2 feet away from reaching me :)
I would think that your opponent would have quite a bit of leverage against you in a bind.
@@drewharrison6433 quite possible. It never came up while I was a student there. I wasn't able to advance very much before I had to stop going, so maybe it could have become an issue as I faced more opponents.
@@drewharrison6433 Es que los españoles usaban una espada en una mano y una vizcaina ( puñal) en la otra.
@@jesusledesma1509 I'm sorry. I don't understand very much Spanish. I don't know what you're saying. Can you repost it in English, please?
@@drewharrison6433just Hit the translate to english Button below his Text maybe? Gosh dude 🙄
Naples and Sicily formed a Spanish viceroyalty from 1503 to 1707.
THE 2 BEST Tercios (Regiment eqivalent) of the Spanish ARMY were El TERCIO de Sicilia.....and EL TERCIO DE NAPOLES .
These Tercios were Marines...
AS a Matter of fact the First ever Marines of any Navy....
They were over trained and very well armed for the purpose and Based in Italy the weapons would be very likely done in full by local Italian weapons Craftsmen of the time.
@@madgringo9263 Los tercios viejos estaban formados SIEMPRE por españoles, aunque llevasen nombres como "tercio de Sicilia". Saludos
My guy Pedro was taking no chances
Or i win or i win type of measures
In Spanish we say "no hacía prisioneros" 🤓
@@SoyTu641 En España se decía , existían toques de “Degüello”, y banderas que indicaban que, en efecto, no se hacían prisioneros. De hecho la de mi perfil es una vieja bandera de “Degüello” de tiempos de la guerra contra Napoleón
That Pedro guy must have been 7 feet tall!
It seems like the grip was pretty long too.
@@GrandDungeonDad Long grip with a heavy pommel add balance for that long blade, I guess...
or had a very smol PP
The called Pedro... tripod
A rapier that outreaches a full two-handed sword?
Geebus...
But it can't parry a two-handed sword. In any case, two-handed swords are quite impractical and more of a "I do it because I can afford to" weapon.
And you have to add the posture because one handed thrust gives you more reach than any two handed technique (sorry if i made any mistake)
@@Andreas-gh6is or more of a "I need to chop the legs off some horses" weapon rather than a weapon for fighting humans directly.
@@Andreas-gh6is why parry if you can just step out of range? Especially if the person is holding the two-handed in two hands that reduces the range even more compared to an outstretched arm thrusting a rapier.
@@NihongoWakannai you've never been in a sword fight, right? You can't just "step out of range". The enemy will follow, or close, and the more range the more time the enemy has to react. Rapiers fight against rapiers or similar weapons, where both fighters do their most not to get hit, because even small wounds are not survivable. Like in a knife fight, the winner gets to go to the hospital, except back in the day, he'd just die too. But because of that dynamic, fighters would be quite reluctant to step into each others range. Broadswords are entirely different beasts, you can't dance around with those and with that kind of weight you have to use force and momentum to beat down the opponent's guard. And most likely, someone with a heavy sword will also wear armor, at least against piercing attacks, to avoid being "tickled" to death by a much more nimble rapier or the like. Therefor I don't think you'd bring a rapier to a broadsword fight, the broadsword will just beat you down.
A rapier made for social distancing.
😂 good one!
Back ! Back i say, you plaguebearers !! Hiss !! 😾💩
Enforcing social distancing 😉
I'd call it made antisocial distancing, myself.
"Have at thee, covid!"
What a fabulous sword! I wonder what it sold for? I was hoping there would be more from the auction site and here it is. I am actually speechless, which is rare for me, at the beauty and size of this beauty. Your delight and enthusiasm at these things is infectious. Thank you for this glimpse at this wonderful sword.
Matt provided a link for that sword at auction in the video description .. that beauty sold for 6000 pounds on June 26th .
@@kasnitch Oh, thank you for getting back to me. I never thought to look in the description; I was thinking of going to the Auction site later and taking a look.
I appreciate your efforts to provide me with this info.
Cheers!
I wonder what that sword cost fresh out of the forge during its time. Converted into modern currency and adjusted for inflation. Do you think it cost more or less than the 6000 pounds it was auctioned for now?
@@BunjiKugashira42 In my limited understanding of History, I have often been shocked by what the conversion factors were from the medieval period. For instance I think it was one of Henry 8 festivals or something cost millions of pounds in todays money corresponding pretty close to what the same event would cost today.
My uneducated guess is the original manufacture price equivalent was less than this action price because the rarity inflates the "value" however it is obviously a fabulous sword.
This was an upper class sword for a wealthy man - thousands of pounds in todays money I would venture
Less than the auction price but still a lot ...
3, 4 , 5 thousand pounds currency equivalent?
But what do I know?.
Thanks for the reply. Cheers!
"Can you believe Pedro? We need to stop inviting him to parties. Every time he turns his stupid sword keeps whacking people in the shins and I've seen three servers trip over that thing."
When you pull that out of the scabbard, you need to do the clown "tied socks out of pocket" routine 😇
Really I can only see three realistic scenarios for drawing this with intent to do harm:
1) You detach the scabbard and use the sword to fling it off.
2) The scabbard has a slit on the top for half its length.
3) You were never meant to wear the scabbard, your second brings you the sword, and you draw it out with him holding the scabbard.
It's probably #3 btw.
That was my thought. How would you even draw this with it sheathed on a baldric?
@@OnlyKaerius #3 and your second runs down the street pulling the scabbard off the blade
They didn't wear this swords with scabbards. They wore them "affixed" to the belt, along the capes (Thus "Ropera", which would translate roughly as: "Of the clothes") (If they had scabbards, it would have been the situation you described, which is not really practical for a self-defense weapon XD)
Okay, I don’t want to hear people on my school complain about the length of my rapier anymore
I remember at the local university, they had a bunch of 34ish inch rapiers and one 39-40 inch one they called "the compensator" derisively, mocking, mostly in fun, any guy who chose it. So, I happened to buy a 29 inch rapier because it was on hand and when they asked why so short, I told them I was compensating...
I actually wouldn't call it a "rapier" as it had a bit wider and stiffer blade, more like a thinner broadsword, but had a swept hilt, so...
@@kamaeq …so it’s like early rapier?
@@MacanWigit I guess you call it that, or something between a broadsword and rapier. I just picked it up with a couple of other swords while on vacation from a small sword maker in Mississippi, forget the name.
First, sorry for my bad english. Maybe this sword was owned by a "valentón", a kind of "bullies" about who I've read (in Cervantes novel "Rinconete y Cortadillo" appear for example). Those "valentones" were known by wearing hugely long swords in order to impress or frighten people, maybe as a way to avoid being challenged to a duel or maybe to look as more dangerous than really they were (a today's comparisson would be those guys in the 90's who used too big clothes to imitate the image of real gangsters just came out from jail). They were part of the underworld of thieves and little "gangters" of that time, some times ex-soldiers, some times only offenders who tried to pass as impoverished lesser nobles. Hope I've helped you to understand a probable origin of that sword.
O era algún matón o de algún tipo con estatura por encima del metro setenta y cinco. ¡Menudo chisme!
@@p.s.9658 es otra posibilidad, pero sería primo del Sansón de Extremadura lo menos 🤣🤣🤣
interesante
You did a good job, understood it easily
I don't think those kind of people could afford a fine sword like these
Remember Matt. Fair fights are for suckers
Thats why you should duel with a sniper rifle at the very least, you can get all the reach that way, tomahawk missile is the next logical step 🐸
@@vedymin1
Go with a Rod from God.
On one hand, this makes most fights unfair... on the other hand, if someone jumps you with a dagger, it may well be unfair to you!
@@mpetersen6 Orbital bombardment might be a touch overkill for the duel scenario....but a missile barrage could be as well idk 😇 the inevitable escalation of arms problem 😎
If you fight fair, at least one of you has made a mistake.
(quote from Schlock Mercenary i think).
Ahhh, the Great Epee from Elden Ring
I was thinking Sephiroth from FFVII.
Those kids were obviously playing too much video games haha
Yes hahaha thought the same, fav weapon in the game
In Elden Ring they would be using it like a Montante. 😂
@@SMac86 Except they don't, the Great Epee in Elden Ring has a very reasonable thrusting attack and a sideswipe cut which is less reasonable but not terrible. The proportions are what is silly in Elden Ring.
Generally, Elden Ring has a lot of good attack animations that fit most of the swords you use. Basically just the greatsword and halberd movesets are badly done and they're dumb because the character seems unable to wield the weapons at all properly (except the knight greatswords). Or the Guardian Swordspear moveset which is weird anf baffling fantasy stuff.
Do you have a specific weapon in mind that uses bad animations?
That's damn near a spear.
I was thinking the same thing, "How can you even beat that rapier?" "Well, you approach quickly, evading the first blow and cutting the distance." "Isn't that just a spear?"
Quite like a pike.
That blade alone is longer than my longsword with about 132cm. This is absurd.
There is no way a sword like that can be drawn in a single motion. Being myself 193cm tall I already have to reach a little to unsheathe my longsword with "only" 100cm of blade length.
Unless this one had some sort of especial scabbard, I struggle to see how one could draw it in a single quick motion.
@@auturgicflosculator2183 There isn't a rule, but I'm going by the idea that the rapier was mostly a self-defense weapon for civilian contexts, in which draw speed could save your life.
Of course, this might be merely a craftsman's skill statement, or ceremonial piece, which would throw out the window any need for quick drawing.
@@auturgicflosculator2183 Maybe Pedro was short and needed some advantage to duel that 2.4m guy. 😅
The best weapon, the best army of history.
I imagine that the cutting capacity definitely shouldn't be underestimated.
The length of the blade almost certainly means you can deliver pretty devastating tip cuts since you can really accelerate the tip of the blade.
Generally when a rapier is too thick the edge is blunt or shappened only for the minimum (avoid being catched and perhaps cutt fingers )
Also that flexibility / wiggling provides a bit of a whipping effect
I want a rapier with that long of a blade. The cross section is a great design
Pedro Lecama...an older form of "Lezama", modern spanish surname. Beautiful piece
And a city in Vizcaya
La z en España es más vieja que la tos.
And the dagger that they usually used with the other hand was also something spectacularly beastly.
More forgotten swords with Mat estern
That's a beautiful Spanish cup hilt 1 hand spear.
I heard about a super long kind of rapier that in Spain was called "mata-amigos" (friend-killer). I suppose because of the dishonourable advantage it gave you -provided, that is, you managed to draw its full length before your enemy's shorter sword had spitted you. Also, unless you were a giant, you would have to drag its tip ungainly about town, a most uncool thing to do
You know the rapier's blade is long when it makes a montante look like a regular longsword.
Polish "koncerz husarski" (I'll leave the name in Polish; it's a long estoc-spike on a sabre hilt) has about 128cm long blades. This rapier reminded me of that, and I wonder if it was not intended to be used in the same way, from horseback.
The pommel needs to be this large (unlike more typical Spanish pommels) to balance the blade. Funny enough, the old smith copied the forged balled pommel from Regenyei. 😏
It may be Italian for the Spanish market, especially if Brescia is involved. I have never seen a Spanish blade like this. But I have seen Italian side-swords with this type of central ridge and very thin blade edges, and they were from Brescia.
Last, why do people call it a cup-hilt? This is a shell-hilt in my eyes. I love how the Spanish use the bars to fill the empty spaces around the shells. And such an exquisite motive, I love it! Sold for £6k. 😅
Matt is in his right to use a 114cm rapier. I order a 114cm one myself. What's the point of getting a rapier if you're not going for length. Get a smallsword if you want a compact thruster. 😄
Size of the hilt would allow koncerz style of use ... so possibly sword for both field use as well as around town?
Koncerze to były praktycznie pręty do walki z konia gdy kopia pękła, ciężkie by zapewnić sztywność, często bez ostrza, ten rapier jest zbyt giętki by go przypominać, widać że był zaprojektowany z myślą o zręcznym fechtunku i pojedynkach w cywilu, mimo długości. Wg mnie inna sprawa po całości niż koncerz.
@@titanscerw Maybe, but you will annoy a lot of people going about the town with such a long blade (some alleys in old towns are narrower than the rapier's length😅). Basically, you'll do it once or twice to show off your new purchase, but you'll probably give up on it and go for a more practical size weapon in no time.
Or if you're English, you'll annoy the queen, get all blades to be cut down to about 32 inches or and ruin it for the rest of us.🤣 It's funny cuz England hasn't got out the mentality of making the life harder for fencer (and collectors) to this day. 😔
@@vedymin1 I understand what you mean. But the cross cross-section made me think of that. It results in a stiff blade. But you may be right that, not as stiff as a diamond-cross-section shaped rod made to withstand cavalry charges.
Btw, I didn't know that Koncers were just a backup to the lance.
On the civilian vs battlefield use... how would you know? People bought their own weapons for the most part. I wouldn't dismiss any options as a possibility.
@@FiliiMartis I say that becouse it would be a poor choice for the battlefield for the most part imho, as most rapiers are (besides the "war rapiers" which are basically sideswords) You could take it with you to the battlefield but you would most likely be poorly served by it, no one is stopping you tho :)
This is the problem with rapiers, they are mostly thrust oriented swords, but their length often makes them somewhat wobbly, good enough for a civilian setting with not much in the way of resistive materials to punch through to stab or cut smn. Also they are optimized for the 1v1 duel/self defence scenario, they are a very directional weapon becouse of mostly stabbing, in a melee you want to cut much more, it helps in defending and offending from multiple sides, keeps the blade free and moving etc. So a rapier would give you both poor stabbing and cutting performance in war while also being hard to oppose other battlefield weapons, possibly getting stuck after a thrust, while smn attacks you from the side and being potentially hard to maneuver in a formation or tighter spaces.
It's either an absurdly long rapier or a strange short spear 🤣😂
I can't process how an average 17th-century Western European man (5' 6 ft/1.67 m) carried it; the blade alone was 80% of his height. It must've been a Renaissance Shaq running around.
Obviously Pedro wasn't your average 17th century western European you twit.
Various rapier masters did say to have a rapier that comes under the arm. As described by Girard Thibault, that means that the pommel reaches the armpit with the point on the ground. (Thibault thought this excessive.) But this rapier is even longer than that measure, unless the wielder was quite tall indeed.
Had to be worn by someone nearing seven feet. A 53" blade is absolutely ludicrous
@@demoths At least 6'7"
Averages are just that, averages. People well above 180cm were not so rare as to be unlikely to be seen fencing.
He is Matt Easton, but will he continue to be?
With that sword he'd be Matt Easttoweston
your enthousiasme is always amazing :)
I don't think I'd even be able to draw that. Not to mention with my height (5'7"), it'd be banging about on the ground while worn
It would take a very tall person to conveniently draw this rapier from the hip. Girard Thibault wrote that the cross should reach the navel with the point on the ground, & that length already becomes a touch tricky to draw quickly & smoothly.
Yeah, but talking about length makes me think of that. Length becomes a hinderance when worn and sudden self defense scenarios, can be a disadvantage. In dueling, which HEMA is basically fixated on, it isn’t cus it was probably frowned upon to jump your opponent and shiv him before he pulls his sword out.
Pedro must have been a very tall fellow, or had an entourage to carry his gear.
@@PJDAltamirus0425 The guy who owned it probably carried a dagger as well for those tight scenarios
@@Nerthos You basically be a moron not to . But there are things shorter more robust blades can do that a dagger can't. Not to say this sword is bad, just that HEMA rules basiccally give an ahistorical advantage to super long weapons cus people do tourneys in cleared out spaces with swords already drawn. The reality is that people lived with their weapons and you don't get dictate the perfect conditions which you use them most of the time.
Pedro de Leçama is Pedro from Leçama. The old Ç is now Z in spanish. Lezama is a spanish town in the basque country, on this epoque a famouse arms made place.
Se ha escrito de toda la vida con Z, joder con z
Pedro Lecama was a famous swordmaker in Toledo in the 17th century, so yes Spanish not Italian. Pedro is in the "Nomina de Palomares" book from the 18th century about Toledo swormakers. El espadero Pedro de Lecama (o Lezama) labró en Toledo y Sevilla en el siglo XVII y ocupa el número 84 en la nómina de Palomares.
The blade of this sword is simply amazing!!!!, it would be good challenge for the "forged in fire" program.
Pedro de Leçama (Lezama), a well known Biscayan smith.
Seeing this sword built by Pedro de Lezama, it is easy to understand why the Spanish won the first battle with the Japanese. When the samurai reached the correct attack distance he was already dead.
An absolute murder weapon.
Its elegance beguiles one into assumptions of frailty.
"You'd better bring a gun"
I seem to recall that some cities only allowed rapiers under a certain length and would break the end off if it was too long.
Very beautiful piece of history!
That Pedro might be a bit unsure about his manhood... nowadays he would have owned a Hummer.
That Pedro was probably the sword maker signing his work and not the owner. But maybe the owner also had a big horse, we'll never know ;)
That's an amazing work of art. Brilliant design.
Interesting how large the handle is given rapiers usually have relativly small grips. Pedro must have been huge
Pedro is most likely the sword maker, not the owner
That IS a Rapier from Basque swordmaker Pedro Leçama or Pedro de Lezama, made in Toledo
"Why is this rapier insanely unfair?"
*presses a button on the hilt*
"Because it's a hand grenade. Catch!"
Beautiful!. Also, that montante! 5:34
That cup hilt is made to trigger the opponents' trypophobia! 😄
Esa espada que tienes en la mano , es como un Ferrari mezclado con un Rolls royce y un Mercedes 600 .Aparte de esa preciosa espada estaba la escuela de saber manejar eso y su nombre es ''Destreza'' .En el Siglo XVI en todo el Imperio Español ir con eso , debía de imponer mucho respeto al que te quisiera retar y se lo pensaría 2 veces .Aparte como en el viejo Oeste , ibas cogiendo fama de un virtuoso en el manejo de ese pedazo de obra de arte .Tendría que dar mucho respeto verte a un tío por la calle con eso , aparte llevaban sus largas capas donde esconderlas y sus grandes sombreros para tapar su identidad , lo cual unido a calles oscuras y con poca luz .De noche , solo se atreverían a salir a la calle los valientes y con la mejor espada y la mejor destreza.
CIERTAMENTE....ASI ERA LA COSA....😮
Pls look at the mocking comments. You can understand why in Spain, Portugal, Italy and all of Latin America they look down on the English and people from the USA. Note that in these countries their feeling of imperial reunification against the Anglo-Saxons is increasingly stronger and that their language does not stop spreading throughout the countries. If at some point in their history they become a single empire again you will see "the laughter"
¿Eres español?
I clicked on the video for the clickbaity title and stayed for the calmly, yet excitedly delivered content.
Also I'm glad you still like long stiff things.
I prefer swept and basket hilts to cup hilts, but dang isn't that sword long and pretty.
That just about sums up how I felt,
That's what she said
There are types of basket-hilted swords that look like asymmetrical swept hilts with oversized knuckle bows and more coverage on one side. It's all about usage; a cup-hilted rapier is mostly a thrusting weapon that is held and attacks horizontally, while a basket-hilted sword is held more vertically and is expected to also cut, so it requires more protection on the side facing forward.
Very beautiful
This is like a storybook rapier
Can you do a video about how a sword like that would be worn? How high up would you wear that? Can you even wear it, or is it always out? Would they use a scabbard? If so, how would you draw it? What kind of quick release mechanisms could they employ to attach it to their person back then?
I think it would have to hang low to buy you all the arm reach advantage it can, plus so you can also pull the scabbard in the opposite direction. It would also have to hang almost perpendicularly to the ground ?
Triangular suspension. Two attachment points on the Scabbard, meeting at a ring to form a triangle. The ring is then hooked onto a high-riding belt. This results in the pommel of the weapon being far forward, which allows you to walk around with it admittedly not much comfort. There's no comfortable way to wear a sword that long. To draw the sword you can either unhook the ring and free the Scabbard from your belt entirely or hang on to the Scabbard and lift and move it around via the Triangular straps. When actually fighting you would almost certainly want to discard the scabbard.
I can't recall if this form of suspension has an actual name.
You can find videos about various forms of suspension on UA-cam
The delicate ornamentation of the guard reminds me of the reliefs that adorn the capitals of the columns of the Visigothic church of San Pedro de La Nave in Toledo.
This isthe rapier George Silver warned you about
En epoca de Felipe II llego a España una embajada del Cipango, Japon que desgraciadamente perdió rl oro que traia como regalo en una tormenta,pero vino un maestro de armas que se batio en duelo amistoso con la primera espada del Reino de España
"heavy thrusting swords in elden ring are unrealistic"
matt easton:
Espada 🇪🇸 Pedro De Lezama (siglo XVII) famoso espadero Español. Espadas de Conchas de Pedro De Lezama.
So in gaming terms that rapier is to OP and needs to be nerfed!😁
Unless it is in my character's hand, yes.
I'm skeptical. Rob Childs, one of the best rapier fencers alive today, recommends using a blade of half one's height plus three inches. Girard Thibault wrote that the cross should reach the navel with the point on the ground, & described longer rapiers as awkward to wear, draw, & fight with.
Sounds like what George Silver would say ... :)
Una ropera sable/mandoble? Tirar con ella será complicado pero no me gustaría estár enfrente!
Do you guys think this Pedro fella was some Shaquille O'Neal sized Spaniard?
If the surname is "Leçama", as I suspect, he was probably Basque, which would explain everything ^^
No, that Pedro fella was a swordsmith from Lezama.
Absolutely gorgeous! I wish I wasn't a poor bc I would love to own something so beautiful.
Matt, you definitely have to get one of your contacts to make reproductions of this particular Rapier bc I really want one and a repro is the only way I'll ever be able to get one. 🙏🙏🙏🙏
I once saw a swordsmith explaining the different uses of the weapons and he showed a very long rapier with crossguard but no basket hilt. He explained that it was made for the camp followers, who after a battle searched the the field for survivors. Imagine being an armored fighter or knight injured on the field, barely able to move. On comes a woman with such a weapon, places the tip between the parts of your armor while stayin out of reach of you. Poised to press on the crossguard with her whole bodyweight, askin a single worded question: "Ransom?"
This thing is awesome! I think it will fetch quite a pretty penny. The artwork is exquisite. I agree, I really would love to fence with it. I'm tall (6'3"), I think I could make it work.
If you do get a chance to fence with a remarkablely long rapier please post a video. A friend insists that anything longer than 32 inches is too difficult for precision, which seems unlikely to me but I am not enough swordsman to prove anything.
@@lornemarr Sadly, my rapier fencing techniques are not up to snuff either. I'm more of a one-and-half-hand basic swordsman. I just would like to try it, to see if it is still balanced and how fast and accurate I could move the point. I think the blade becomes much more important here, as you can still slice with it. Not sure if slashing is a thing with a rapier this long.
I'd like to see a pro handle this thing.
The spanish at the time considers blades longer than 5/4 vara (41in):
-Are offensive, immodest, excessive, and contemptible.
-Will damage your own reputation by decreasing the perception of your valor for 5 generations.
-Cause friends to be too ashamed to speak on your behalf, enemies to disparage you, and neutral parties to favor your adversary.
-In losing, having chosen a longer weapon will cause your guilt to be worsened and the sentence and punishment is increased (judicially speaking).
-Cause you to be viewed as effeminate for not confronting your adversary on equal terms.
-Are regarded by the the people who are praiseworthy as detestable, and they condemn it.
So most likely a sword for display and collection only.
Certain Italian masters like Ridolfo Capo Ferro wrote that the sword (rapier) should reach from the ground to the wielder's armpit. That's about three-quarters of a person's height, depending on their exact proportions. If the owner of this rapier were quite tall, it'd fit that measure. & it's certainly possible some individual wanted a longer sword than any established style (that we know of) recommended.
Oh boi. Mr. "Dual wielding never existed" discovered Spain, at last. Wait until he finds out about the Vizcaína sword, and how Spanish swordsmen fought with one in each hand.
Could it be for poking people from horseback with?
No, and you usually pair it with a parriying dagger. That's the traditional fencing taught at the historical fencing schools.
I think that many rapiers are too floppy for warfare purposes ? They are good enough to poke smn in an unarmored duel setting tho.
Pedro de Laçama - the cedilla makes is an s/z sound. It means Pedro "from La Zama" (cf. Don Quixote de la Mancha - the character was from La Mancha). It probably refers to the modern day town of Lezama in northern Spain, which would be the "surname" of the smith indicating where he was originally from, not where it was necessarily forged.
Lezama con z, antes y ahora. La z siempre ha estado presente en el vocabulario Español
“For its length it is incredibly stiff.” - Matt Easton, 2024
Heh heh heh heh heh
Thanks, very interesting. The inscription that appears on the rapier is probably PEDRO D LECAMA. This person, the swordsmith Pedro de Lecama (or Lezama) actually worked in Toledo and Seville in the 17th century.
Sephiroth if he used a rapier.
"Pedro Lecama" -> Lecama would be writen Lezama in today's Spanish (C was commonly used for Z or C sounds indistinctively centuries ago, before the foundation of the Royal Spanish Academy (RAE)). Lezama is a town in Northern Spain, and also a common name of Basque nobelty, so there you have: as you said it is most probably a Spanish rapier
Pedro lezama con Z, se escribía y se escribe con Z
@@mrr3808 cuando las le guas no estaban estandarizadas, se escribia lecama, lesama, lezama o leçama indistintamente, aunque se referirse a la misma persona
@@igarras5285 Lezama, con z. Venga cachondo no aburras, cuñado
Skill issue honestly.
A captain in a company of "hijosdalgo" (some kind of low-nobility military brotherhood) named Pedro de Lezama was active during the chronology you mention. That Pedro could have been the owner of that rapier!
P.S. I'm an early modern historian, although specialised in galleys ;)
A sword like this is made with the king's gold, that is, by a series of blacksmiths on the payroll, and this model is surely made by Pedro de Lezama, a blacksmith who, if he had had an English surname, would be your swordmaster on your chachi list. reinterpreting history.
If you don't know where Lezama is, it is a Basque town near Bilbo, near another port that may sound more familiar, Renteria where Blas de Lezo was born, that doesn't sound familiar either, as English memory tends to be elusive for its own sake.
I dont want go be rich to buy expensive cars or Apple products, I want to be rich to buy swords and other medieval weapons and decorate my house like a damn museum
No one "scum okupa/ilegal inmigrants" will enter your castle my friend 💪🏻
Wonderful explanation👏👏👏
Thanks!
This rapier is N U T S, absolutely beautiful, and what an interesting blade! A beauty!
I had the luck to measure another monstruous rapier some years ago, it is displayed in the Écouen castle in France (Musée Renaissance). It is probably german and around 1590, and it also has a 135cm blade from the cross (diamond cross-section). What an incredibly enormous thing. It weighs like 1,4kg, so it isn't so heavy compared to other swords. A stunningly cool experience.
Pedro went to an I-Ai-Do-class to learn how to draw his sword in the blink of an eye.
And he did it!
Only, from then on, it took him about 10 seconds to blink with his eyes.
That is a beautiful sword, holy crap. And that would be extremely intimidating to go up against.
How long did it take to make this sword? With all the engraving I wouldn't be surprised if it took months.
Pedro de Leçama (Lezama in modern spelling) is a well known bladesmith that worked in Bilbao, Toledo and Seville n the XVII Century. His name appears in the "Nomina de Palomares" a 18th Century books about Toledo's swordsmiths. Apparently born Orduña in 1483. It is possible that the blade was his and the rest made by oter crafstman.
If he was born in 1483 in addition to being a great bladesmith he also had access to the elixir of life if he was still working in the XVIIth century.
Lezama, siempre se ha escrito con z, nombre Español, CON Z.
Lezama, siempre se ha escrito con z, nombre Español, CON Z.
@@mrr3808 La ç era una letra españolísima.
@@mrr3808 Que cuñado eres colega ¿Siempre? Échale un ojo a cualquier documento antiguo, por ejemplo en la colección documental del Archivo Municipal de Orduña, y verás como lo escribían.
Please visit Toledo
From most of the comments I have reviewed from my commentary, most have presumed that this rapier was an everyday carry. Clearly impractical. as an analogy think how some people today own more than one pistol: would you pair a "battlefield blaster" with your tuxedo when a PPK in your cummerbund would suffice? It is said that George Washington owned at least 17 swords in his life some for use on the battlefield, state dress, favorite everyday use, etc. I believe this rapier is clearly a specialty weapon, possibly for dueling personally or for use by protégées. In context of its time, dueling was a serious social business, not taken lightly.
1:47 Well of course, Napoles, Sicila and Cerdeña where part of Spain in 16th and 17th century