Hand-Forged Little Khopesh, Configurable Build

A Hand-Forged Little Khopesh, Built the Way You Want It

Choose the blade finish, the handle and the scabbard colour, then add your engraving — and we forge that exact blade. Every selection updates the preview on screen. There are 180 possible builds before personalisation, and each one is forged to order in Kathmandu.

Underneath every combination is the same blade: 12 inches of hand-forged 5160 spring steel in the forward-curving khopesh profile, on a full tang, with a five-inch grip and a hand-stitched leather scabbard over a shaped wooden core. At 17 inches overall and around 700 grams it is the compact end of the Egyptian sickle-sword — the companion scale rather than the battle scale, and the easiest way into the shape.

Your Choices

Blade length and construction are fixed on this pattern. For a longer or shorter khopesh, see the full range below or use our custom forge service.

What a Khopesh Actually Is

The khopesh is the sickle-sword of Bronze Age Egypt. It takes its name from the Egyptian word for the foreleg of an ox, which is what the shape resembles, and it reached Egypt from the sickle-swords of Mesopotamia and the Levant — weapons already centuries old by the time the New Kingdom made them famous. From roughly 1600 to 1200 BC it was the sidearm of Egyptian soldiers and the weapon pharaohs are shown holding on temple walls.

The shape is not decorative. The sharpened edge runs along the outside of the curve, so the blade bites on a downward hooking stroke with the force concentrated at the belly, and the hook itself could catch a shield rim or an opponent's arm and pull it out of line. It is a chopping and hooking weapon, not a thrusting one, which is why the point is usually blunt or rounded on the originals.

Two khopesh swords were recovered from the tomb of Tutankhamun, one larger and one smaller, which is the clearest surviving evidence that the type was made at more than one scale. The Little Khopesh follows that smaller proportion.

Bronze Then, Spring Steel Now

Here is the honest part. Real khopesh swords were cast in bronze, not forged in steel. That is why they look the way they do: bronze can be poured into a curved mould and given a thick spine, but it is soft, and when iron arrived in Egypt the khopesh faded out of military use and survived mainly as a ceremonial and royal emblem.

Ours is forged from 5160 high-carbon spring steel, hammered on an anvil rather than cast. That makes it a modern interpretation rather than a reproduction: far tougher than any bronze original, able to take a working edge and hold it, and able to chop without deforming. If you want a strictly accurate Bronze Age piece, you want a cast bronze replica from a specialist. If you want the shape in a blade you can actually use, this is it — and we would rather tell you the difference than let you find out later.

Which Blade Finish Suits a Khopesh?

Handle and Scabbard

Six grips are fitted to the same full tang. Rosewood is our standard: dense, dark and stable, and the most durable everyday grip. Whitewood is the pale timber and gives the brightest, plainest build. Buffalo horn is glossy black and takes a deep polish — horn and bone are also the materials Bronze Age craftsmen actually used on hilts, so they suit the piece. Bone is close to ivory and the most striking against a dark blade. The two-material grips, rosewood + whitewood and rosewood + horn, band contrasting sections along the handle.

The scabbard is hand-stitched leather over a shaped wooden core, in six colours. Black and brown are the most restrained; red, green and blue suit a themed display; white is the most striking and shows wear soonest. Add a blackwood or rosewood display stand if the khopesh will live on a shelf rather than a wall — at 17 inches it fits where a full-size khopesh will not, which is the main reason people buy this size.

Engraving

The personalisation field takes a name, initials, a date, a dedication or a short line, engraved before the blade ships, and you can upload a crest, a sigil, an ankh or other motif, a logo or a photograph for us to reproduce. On a piece bought as a gift — which this one often is — the engraving is usually the whole point, and the forward curve leaves a clean flat panel for it.

Why This Khopesh Works

Standard Build Specification

Blade, handle and overall length are fixed in this configurator and do not change with your selections. Because every piece is hand-forged, small variation in weight, dimensions, grain and finish is normal.

An Honest Note on This Khopesh

An honest note. Three things worth saying plainly. First, this is a steel interpretation of a bronze weapon. The shape is faithful; the material is not, and it is better than the original rather than the same as it. Second, the khopesh is a chopping and hooking blade, not a thrusting one — the curve puts the force at the belly and the point is not the business end, so do not buy it expecting a stabbing weapon. Third, 5160 is not stainless. It will rust if left wet or stored damp in its scabbard; wipe it dry, keep a light film of oil on it, and it will outlast you.

How Your Order Is Made

Caring for Your Khopesh

Wipe the blade dry after handling — skin acid marks carbon steel within days — and keep a light film of oil on it; mineral or camellia oil both work. The inside of the curve is the part people miss, so run the cloth into it rather than straight along the flat. Do not store the khopesh in its scabbard for long periods, because the leather and wooden core hold moisture against steel; a stand or a dry drawer is better. Give a timber grip a little oil once or twice a year, and keep horn and bone away from radiators and direct sun. Light surface rust comes off with fine steel wool and a re-oil.

Shipping, Returns and Warranty

Every piece is prepared at the forge in seven to ten days, and shipping adds a further seven to ten days. Orders to the USA and Canada travel with FedEx; everywhere else ships on a DDP service, which means duties and taxes are settled before the parcel moves so there is nothing to pay on delivery. Every piece carries the Everest Forge manufacturer warranty against defects in forging and heat treatment. Because a configured and engraved blade is made to your specification, it falls outside our standard returns window except where the blade is faulty — full terms are on our shipping and returns page. Import rules on edged blades vary by country and are the buyer's responsibility to check before ordering.

Explore More Everest Forge Blades

Questions About the Little Khopesh