Category Archives: Articles

Vietnamese Bladed Melee Weapon of 19th – first half 20th Century. The Problems of Attribution

Barczewski S. (2015). Klinkovoe holodnoe oruzhie V’etnama XIX- pervoj poloviny HH vv. Problemy atribucii [Vietnamese Bladed Melee Weapon of 19th – first half 20th Century. The Problems of Attribution]. Istoricheskoe oruzhievedenie [Weapons History Journal], № 2, pp. 5 — 11. Barczewski S. Abstract: The article is devoted to the problems concerning the attribution of the Vietnamese bladed melee weapon of 19th – first half 20th century. The objects of this time span can’t be estimated as extremely rare as they are preserved in the museums and private collections while quite often they are wrongly described as the Chinese ones though. Notwithstanding their evident outward similarity rooted in the strongest multicultural influence of China on its southern neighbor the Vietnamese bladed weapon had got its distinguished features in its construction, materials and ornamentation elements that were used. The author accents these features and proposes to use the most characteristic ones as…

An Attempt to Develop a Lecture Course Titled «Introduction to Historical Weaponology

Samgin S. (2015). Opyt razrabotki lekcionnogo kompleksa «Vvedenie v Istoricheskoe oruzhievedenie» [An Attempt to Develop a Lecture Course Titled «Introduction to Historical Weaponology]. Istoricheskoe oruzhievedenie [Weapons History Journal], № 1, pp. 124 — 135. Samgin S. Abstract: For the longest time Historical Weaponology has been recognized as an auxiliary historical discipline. However in Russia it has not been developed into a separate branch of science yet because of the interruption in professional studies, lack of activities in academic publishing and translating of foreign works during the Soviet period. Today Historical Weaponology in Russia is successfully winning the lost ground though the problem with training of future experts in this field exists and still there are no educational programs on Historical Weaponology in Russia. Meanwhile, such programs would be able not only contribute to the increase of interest in historical weapons, but lay the ground for the specialization of professional historians as…

The Self-made Submachine Guns Used by Belorussian Soviet Partisans During World War II

Loparev A. (2015). Samodel’nye pistolety-pulemety v belorusskom sovetskom partizanskom dvizhenii perioda Velikoj Otechestvennoj vojny [The Self-made Submachine Guns Used by Belorussian Soviet Partisans During World War II]. Istoricheskoe oruzhievedenie [Weapons History Journal], № 1, pp. 70 — 81. Loparev A. Abstract: The article concerns the manufacturing process of submachine guns, both copies and true weapon systems during the guerilla fighting in Belarus in 1941-1943. In the days of World War II the strongest in Europe anti-Nazi guerilla stir was active on the occupied territories of the Belarus Soviet Republic. By 1943 scattered groups of fighters had been organized in a strong well developed structure and to fill in the automatic firearms shortage submachine guns manufacturing was started. It is these weapons the emphasis first of all was made on because the guerilla tactics of “attack-stepback” sought high intensity automatic fire in a short span of time. Mechanical workshops fitted for…

“Southern” and “Northern” Bows in the “Hunting weapons” Collection of the State Darwin Museum

Miloserdov D. (2015). «Juzhnyj» i «severnyj» luki v kollekcii «Orudija lova» Gosudarstvennogo Darvinovskogo muzeja [“Southern” and “Northern” Bows in the “Hunting weapons” Collection of the State Darwin Museum]. Istoricheskoe oruzhievedenie [Weapons History Journal], № 1, pp. 101 — 111. Miloserdov D. Abstract: Two different types of bows from the collection of the State Darwin Museum are described in the article. The first one is the voghul bow or the “northern bow” as the author calls it. The “voghul” is a legacy name of the Mansi, a low-numbered indigenous community of the Khanty-Mansi autonomous District in Russia. The bow belongs to the composite type. Its long arms (totally 185 cm long) consists of the back and the inner plate glued together and fixed additionally with tendinous fiber wrapped in six points. The wood is of different species. The technology of string manufacturing permits to attribute the bow to the Mansi. The…

For Stabbing or for Cutting? The Ways of Dagger Use by the Caucasus Peoples in the 19th century

Sheremetyev D. (2015). Kolot’ ili rubit’. Primenenie kinzhala u narodov Kavkaza v XIX veke [For Stabbing or for Cutting? The Ways of Dagger Use by the Caucasus Peoples in the 19th century]. Istoricheskoe oruzhievedenie [Weapons History Journal], № 1, pp. 30 — 56. Sheremetyev D. Abstract: The article is devoted to different aspects of dagger use in the Caucasus region in the 19th century. The technique possibilities of cutting and stabbing were analyzed in depth as well as the cultural norms connected with these ways of dagger use. Indeed, contemporary ethnologists and linguists document it is cutting that must be practiced by a warrior attached to his dignity while stabbing was considered to be “too easy” to exercise. Consequently in accordance with the cultural norms and rules a warrior mustn’t have aimed to win a combat using the methods which were the easiest and strongest ones. The fight was probably…

On the Use of Indian Terms for Identification of Weapon Types

Kurochkin A. (2015). Ob ispol’zovanii indijskih terminov dlja identifikacii vidov oruzhija [On the Use of Indian Terms for Identification of Weapon Types]. Istoricheskoe oruzhievedenie [Weapons History Journal], № 1, pp. 57 — 69. Kurochkin A. Abstract: The European nomenclature describing Indian edged weapons was already developed in the 19th century and since then has not undergone any change or thinking over or critical analysis. By the way the nomenclature includes Indian terms perceived by European scholars as authentic names of different weapon types. More to the point these definitions were often referred to any type of edged weapon regardless their meaning while a final variant presented by the Europeans as a regional name depended usually on the geographical place the word was heard. Most words used in India to determine edged weapons are generic terms based on the verbs “to kill”, “to cut”, “to slash”, “to hurt”, “to split”, etc. In…

Undocumented Russian Fascine Knife of the Shuvalov Observation Corps

Zakharov D., Terekhov E., Ustyanov A. (2015). Neopisannyj russkij tesak Shuvalovskogo Observacionnogo korpusa [Undocumented Russian Fascine Knife of the Shuvalov Observation Corps]. Istoricheskoe oruzhievedenie [Weapons History Journal], № 1, pp. 112 — 117. Zakharov D. Terekhov E. Ustyanov A. Abstract: Russian arms of the Empire Period despite of many published pieces have been studied insufficiently. Hence the appearance of yet unknown models is quite understandable.  The article deals with a Russian fascine knife which hasn’t been listed in any catalogue of Russian edged weapons. The samples of the weapon are kept in the collections of the Artillery museum in Saint-Petersburg and in the Tula Museum of arms and armor. The authors attribute it not as a modification of a well-known engineer fascine knife of the 1797 version but as its previous model of the 1756 which is an infantry fascine knife of the Shuvalov observation corps. Shuvalov Observation Corps was…

The “Paren’ knife” – Legends and Facts

Arkhangelsky L. (2015). Paren’skij nozh. Legendy i byl’ [The “Paren’ knife” – Legends and Facts]. Istoricheskoe oruzhievedenie. — 2015. — № 1. — S. 82 — 100. Arkhangelsky L. Abstract: In the article L. Arkhangelskiy reconstructs and describes the manufacturing technique of the so called “paren’ knives” – the knives which were forged in the village of Paren’ on the north of Penjinskiy district of the Kamchatka Region (Kamchatka Krai). The village seems to have sprung up in the 18th century and got its name from the river Paren’ which banks it was situated on. Now the village is almost extinct. The knives which were manufactured by the koryaks from Paren’ used to be very common in the whole north-west of the Russian state. The local reindeer breeders, hunters and fishermen appreciated these knives higher than any other because of their form fitting perfectly the local necessities and conditions and their…

Mineral Surveyor V.F.Ludlov’s Small Sword

Anikin K. (2015). Shpaga markshejdera V.F. Ludlova [Mineral Surveyor V.F.Ludlov’s Small Sword]. Istoricheskoe oruzhievedenie [Weapons History Journal], № 1, pp. 118 — 123. Anikin K. Abstract: The article deals with an interesting sample of an edged weapon from the collection of the Sverdlov Regional Museum of Local Lore. It is a small sword with a made-to-order blade which belonged to a mineral surveyor V.F.Ludlov. The weapon is of good provenance. It appeared in the museum in March 1913. Gottlib Wilhelm Ludlov was born in 1779 in Turingia, got an education in “mining&quarrying” and entered into the Rusian service in 1805. The last reference to him dates back to 1825. The blade of the small sword which is an officer infantry sword of 1798 production year was specially made in Zlatoust, one of the Russian centers of edged arms manufacturing in the beginning of 1820s. The attribution is based on an…

Western Georgia Broadswords and Sabers with Sloping Hilt without a Crossguard and Their Place in the Evolution of Caucasus Weapons with Long Blade

Bakradze I., Kiziria V. (2015). Zapadno-gruzinskie palashi i sabli s naklonnym jefesom otkrytogo tipa i ih mesto v jevoljucii kavkazskogo dlinnoklinkovogo oruzhija [Western Georgia Broadswords and Sabers with Sloping Hilt without a Crossguard and Their Place in the Evolution of Caucasus Weapons with Long Blade]. Istoricheskoe oruzhievedenie [Weapons History Journal], № 1, pp. 5 — 29. Bakradze I. Kiziria V. Abstract: The article is devoted to kabiani khmali, a weapon with long blade which is considerably little known outside Georgia. The authors define it as a type of a cavalry sword which emerged in the end of 17th – beginning of 18th century in Samgrelo and Imeretia in Western Georgia. The whole number of the weapon examples preserved both in museums and private collections is small and many of them are associated with Georgian famous ruling families, noblemen and politicians of the 18th-19th centuries. The authors mark out and analyze…