This category is dedicated to exploring the rich history and legacy of edged weapons from around the world. Here you’ll find in-depth stories and articles about traditional blades such as the Nepalese kukri (khukuri), swords, daggers, machetes, bowie knives, and other iconic forged weapons. Learn about their origins, cultural significance, battlefield use, and the evolution of their design over centuries. Whether it’s the legendary role of the Gurkha kukri, the rise of the bowie knife in frontier America, or the global influence of forged swords and machetes, we aim to preserve and share the stories behind these powerful tools of survival, honor, and craftsmanship. At Everest Forge, we not only handcraft these blades in Nepal but also honor the traditions and techniques passed down through generations of blacksmiths. Join us in uncovering the timeless world of hand-forged edged weapons.
15 Oct
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36
The Jian Is China's Straight Double-Edged Sword; the Dao Is Its Curved Single-Edged Sabre, and for Two Thousand Years They Did Different Jobs
The jian (剑) and the dao (刀) are the two classic swords of China, and the difference between them is simple to state: the jian is straight and double-edged, with a diamond cross-section and a long tapering point, built for precise thrusts and cuts; the dao is curved or straight-backed and single-edged, with a thick spine behind a wedge-shaped blade, bui..
15 Oct
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42
Longsword, Greatsword and Zweihänder Are Three Steps Up the Same Ladder, and Each One Changes How the Sword Is Held and Used
A longsword is a straight double-edged sword with a grip long enough for two hands, typically 105 to 130 cm overall and 1.1 to 1.8 kg, used one- or two-handed in the fifteenth-century fencing traditions. A greatsword is the bigger fourteenth- and fifteenth-century "sword of war", 120 to 145 cm and up to about 2.4 kg, always used with two hands. A zweihänder is the sixte..
15 Oct
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31
The Shotel Is a Deeply Curved, Double-Edged Ethiopian Sword Made to Reach Around a Shield
The shotel (Amharic ሾተል) is the sickle-shaped sword of the Ethiopian highlands: a thin, flat, double-edged blade bent into a curve so deep it is almost a half-moon, on a simple guardless hilt of horn or wood. Its shape is usually explained by the shields of the region. A straight sword striking a large hide shield stops on it; a shotel, swung around the shield's edge, can reach the man behind it or hook ..
13 Oct
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161
Egypt Fought for Two Thousand Years With Maces, Axes, Spears and Bows; the Sword Arrived Late, and the Khopesh Was Its Only Famous Form
Ancient Egypt had no swords for most of its history. The armies of the Old and Middle Kingdoms fought with the mace, the axe, the spear and the bow, and the copper or bronze dagger was a sidearm. The sword only became an Egyptian weapon in the New Kingdom, after about 1550 BC, and when it did it took the shape of the khopesh, the sickle-sword borrowed from th..
13 Oct
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140
The Bowie Knife Was Made Famous by One Fight on a Mississippi Sandbar in 1827, and Almost Everything Else About Its Origin Is Argued Over
On 19 September 1827, on a sandbar in the Mississippi River opposite Natchez, a formal duel between two men who both missed turned into a brawl among their friends. James Bowie, shot twice and stabbed, killed the man who had pinned him with a large knife his brother had given him. Newspapers carried the story across the United States within weeks, and the "..
12 Oct
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169
The Khopesh Is an Egyptian Bronze Sickle-Sword; the Kopis Is a Greek Iron Chopper. They Share Four Letters and Nothing Else
The khopesh and the kopis are two different swords from two different civilisations, a thousand years and a sea apart, and the only reason they get confused is that the names sound alike. The khopesh (also spelled khepesh, often misspelled "kopesh") is the Egyptian sickle-sword of the Bronze Age, c. 1600 to 1100 BC: a crescent blade with the cutting edge on the outside o..
12 Oct
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180
A Machete Sheath Has Three Jobs: Cover the Edge, Hold the Blade Upside Down, and Let Go With One Hand
A good machete sheath covers the whole edge so it cannot cut you or your pack, holds the blade firmly enough that it stays put when you turn the sheath upside down, and releases with one hand so you can draw without fumbling. Leather, Kydex and canvas can all do this, and each fails in a different way when it is made badly. This guide compares the three materials, explains the carry positions..
12 Oct
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244
A Saber Is a Curved, Single-Edged Sword Built for the Cut, and Every Type Follows From That
A saber (British spelling: sabre) is a single-edged sword with a curved blade, a guard that protects the hand, and a balance set for cutting rather than thrusting. It began as the sword of steppe horsemen, became the standard cavalry weapon of every European army from the seventeenth century to the First World War, and still exists today as the naval cutlass, the officer's dress sword and the fencing s..
12 Oct
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240
Owning a Sword Is Legal in All 50 States; Carrying One Is Where the Rules Differ
Swords are legal to own in all 50 US states. No state bans a private adult from buying, owning or keeping a sword at home, and there is no federal law against shipping one across state lines. What changes from state to state is carry: whether you can wear a sword openly, whether you can conceal it, how long a blade may be before it becomes a "dangerous weapon" in the eyes of the statute, and where you may not tak..
11 Oct
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228
Guts' Dragon Slayer vs Cloud's Buster Sword
Two giant swords, two franchises, one argument that has run for nearly thirty years. Cloud Strife's Buster Sword from Final Fantasy VII and Guts' Dragon Slayer from Berserk are the two most famous oversized blades in Japanese pop culture, they are constantly confused with each other, and one of them came first. This post settles what can be settled — dates, designs, what each would weigh in real steel — and tells you which one you are actually looking..