Iron Age
This is a computer illustration of a sword said to date from about 300 BC. It is iron with bronze fittings and features a well designed stick tang. All organic grip materials have long since disappeared. It is also remarkably modern looking and could be mistaken for a Norman blade made some 1500 years later. It was found in Sligo.
Celts from Europe arrived in Ireland about 700BC and rapidly became the dominant culture. According to the accounts they arrived by sea under the leadership of Militus, one of whose daughters, Eiriu, gave her name to the island which has since been variously known as Eireann or Erin. They believed that their predecessors Na Tuatha De Dannan were accomplished magicians and attributed a great seven day storm encountered as they were attempting to land as evidence of this. In reality the Tuatha De Danann were astronomers and architects. Neo Celtic culture spread across the entire island rapidly and was never diluted by the Romans although there is evidents that the Romans had plans to take Ireland they never suceeded in establishing anything more than a bridgehead on the Island. Celtic Culture continued unabated for another 1200 years until Christianity finally put in an appearance in 500AD. Indeed Gaelic culture survived largely intact until about 1600 AD. These Gaels were closely related to the Gauls of southern France and the Galicians of north west Spain. They are also related to the Scot.
Posidonius writing between 135 and 51 B.C. in a description of Celtic eating habits says the following.
"----raising up whole limbs in both hands and cutting off the meat, while any part which is hard to tear off they cut through with a small dagger which hangs attached to their sword sheath in its own scabard-----".
Wandering around a museum we are perhaps attracted to the great swords of antiquity not alone for their fine workmanship but also the glorious or inglorious histories they articulate. But the interesting thing in the above commentary is not the sword itself but the humble steak knife attached to it. An army it is said marches on its stomach and the fuel that feeds the sinews of war is every bit as important as the tools used to process that war. Interesting also that the Japanese coupled a wee steak knife to their famous sword in a like manner, over a thousand years after these words were written. Every modern army outfits its personel with a mess kit that most troopers will admit are just as important to them as the tools of war they carry with them into battle.
So it is in everyday life that the simple knives that make things not only easier but possible are often ignored. In examining the fine implements of the Iron age let us not lose sight of the importance of that simple knife we pick up every day without thinking. Our forebears also used such knives and indeed they must have been far more common than their representation in museum displays would indicate. Unfortunately iron implements do not fare well in Ireland's damp climate and the larger objects fare better in this regard not only because they have more material to sarcrifice to oxidation but because they were accorded more importance by the people entrusted with their care. Besides a utilitarian item tends to get used, that is its nature.
Twenty five knife blades were recovered from diggings around Christ Church Cathederal in Cathair Corcaigh or Corcach Na Mumhan (The Great Marsh Of Munster) An area comprising about four city blocks was at that time under occupation. It currently sits submerged beneath the center of the modern city of Cork. Most were probably pounded out down the road at North Gate Bridge where a forge and water wheel were found. The forge was believed to be in use from 1250 to 1300 AD.
Of these its possible to identify 5
distinct patterns, Two of which may simply be different stages in
the life of one pattern. All are utilities ranging in blade
length from 3 to 5 inches. All are single edged stick tangs which
the archeologists refer to as a "whittle tang". In some
the tang is an extension of the blade back or biased toward that
side while others are centrally located. Many of the regular
knives are tanged with a round tang shoulder on the back side and
a sharp shoulder on the edge side. Many are reminiscent in style
to a Scian Dubh. Noteworthy is a cleaver like knife with a wide
blade looking like it would make short work of veggies. This
blade bears a remarkable though accidental resemblance to a
Japanese "Naga".
The carpenter is represented by a lone longshanked gouge with a
very short tang.
An odd one is the hook shaped pruning knife with the inside of
the hook forming the cutting edge and a bifurcated haft socket.
Another anomaly is an item that looks like a pitsa cutter about 3
to 4 inches in diameter with a hole in the middle. This one may
not be a knife at all, as it is very corroded and any trace of a
cutting edge has disappeared.
Much of this stuff was
perhaps produced by the forge at Northgate. The upper
levels have not survived but the base is still intact showing the
probable location of the firebox with it's three sided air
ducting. Nothing has survived of the bellows but there are
possible indications that a trip hammer used the water wheel as
motive power.
Something the
archeologists believe to be an anvil base was also recovered. It
was made from a piece of tree bole with a depression in the
middle to take a somewhat hemispherical chunk of iron or steel,
the flat base of the hemisphere serving as the face of the anvil.
