falchion
Sign in to saveA falchion (; Old French: fauchon; Latin: falx, "sickle") is a one-handed, single-edged sword of European origin. Falchions are found in different forms from around the 13th century up to and including the 16th century. In some versions, the falchion looks rather like the seax and later the sabre, and in other versions more like a machete with a crossguard.
Key facts
- Weapon.name
- Falchion
- Weapon.image
- Falchion MET 244431.jpg
- Weapon.image_size
- 150
- Weapon.caption
- Falchion – Italy, 15th century
- Weapon.origin
- France
- Weapon.type
- Sword
- Weapon.is_bladed
- yes
- Weapon.production_date
- 13th–16th centuries
- Weapon.variants
- See Elmslie typology
- Weapon.blade_type
- Generally single-edged, curved (occasionally straight)
- Weapon.hilt_type
- After an arming sword
via Wikipedia infobox
Wikidata facts
- Image
- Albion Vassal Medieval Sword 7 (6094104102) reduced background.jpg
Show 1 more fact
- Commons category
- Falchions
via Wikidata · CC0
~6 min read
Article
10 sectionsContents
- Types
- Cleaver falchions
- Cusped falchions
- Other falchions
- Elmslie typology
- Status
- Popular culture
- See also
- References
- External links
A falchion (; Old French: fauchon; Latin: falx, "sickle") is a one-handed, single-edged sword of European origin. Falchions are found in different forms from around the 13th century up to and including the 16th century. In some versions, the falchion looks rather like the seax and later the sabre, and in other versions more like a machete with a crossguard.
==Types== The blade designs of falchions varied widely across the continent and over time. They almost always included a single edge with a slight curve on the blade towards the point on the end and most were also affixed with a quilloned crossguard for the hilt in the manner of the contemporary arming swords. Unlike the double-edged swords of Europe, few actual swords of this type have survived to the present day; fewer than a dozen specimens are currently known. A number of weapons similar to the falchion existed in Western Europe, including the Messer, hanger and the backsword. Two basic types of falchion can be identified: