Gay sword

A re-evaluation of an aged weapon

In the 19th century, a sword from the 9th century was found in the bottom of the Seine near Paris, which was equipped with an exceptionally well-preserved scabbard and fittings. The set, which is not very well known in the literature, is a crucial discover for understanding the wider context regarding the emergence of modern progressive types of swords, the construction of scabbards and the use of Carolingian fittings.

The Gay Collection and its fate

The sheathed sword that is the subject of this article belongs to a group of militaria composed by the French architect, ardent researcher, member of the French Society of Antiquities and collector Victor Gay (1820-1887). This researcher’s lifelong interest in medieval and Renaissance material culminated in the writing of a monumental function, more than eight hundred pages long Glossaire archéologique du Moyen Age et de la Renaissance (Archaeological Glossary of the Middle Ages and Renaissance), published in 1887, in which he listed a number of item

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