Started: Oct. 12
Finished: Nov. 1
Notes: It's only been a little more than a week since I read Richard Burton's The Book of the Sword from the 19th Century. Of course much of the information there was outdated due to historical research over the last century and more, so I wanted to read something more up to date. This book here was originally published in 1960 though my edition includes an update from 1994. Unfortunately the author is no longer with us, so there can be no other updates. However, for decades Ewart Oakeshott was considered by many to be the pre-eminent expert on all things sword related. I have read a number of shorter pieces from him though this is the first book of his I've to read.
Mini review: This turned out to be an excellent book full of plenty of information. I found it to be an excellent follow up to Burton's The Book of the Sword because that book winds down toward the end of the Roman era which is mostly where this book picks up, continuing along until the 15th Century. The Viking era is covered fairly well, and the 11th through 14th Centuries are covered extremely well, breaking down the various parts of a sword and codifying them. And to make clear, most of this book pertains to swords, though there are some shorter sections pertaining to daggers, polearms, armor, etc.
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