Thunderclad Hand Forged Damascus Viking War Hammer | Flat Faced Damascus Head | Rosewood Haft with Brass Bolsters and Turned Brass Pommel | Norse Gift | RK-1633

This is a hand forged war hammer with a heavy Damascus head, a dark rosewood haft, brass bolsters and inlaid brass strips down the grip, and a turned brass pommel at the base. Both striking faces are flat and slightly waisted where the head narrows into the eye, and the whole head is etched so the layered banding of the steel reads clearly across the cheeks. A shaped leather cover comes with it to keep the head off furniture and out of the light.

The hammer is the most loaded object in the whole Norse canon, and the reason is a short passage in the Prose Edda. Loki wagered his head with the dwarf brothers Brokkr and Eitri that they could not out make the sons of Ivaldi. While Brokkr worked the bellows Loki turned himself into a fly and bit him on the eyelid, Brokkr let go of the bellows for a moment to wipe the blood away, and the hammer came out of the fire with a handle too short. Mjolnir was still judged the finest of the treasures. That is why every Norse hammer pendant and every hammer in the sagas is drawn with a stubby grip. This one is forged, ground, etched and fitted in our Memphis shop and ships with the leather cover and our lifetime warranty.

Specifications

What a war hammer actually was

The battlefield hammer is later and more specialised than most people expect. Through the Viking age the axe did the work, because an axe puts a long edge behind a small contact patch and it will bite through a shield rim or a helmet edge. The dedicated war hammer belongs to the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, when plate armour got good enough that a cutting edge simply skated off it. A hammer does not need to cut. It delivers the whole mass of the head into a few square millimetres of steel plate and transmits the shock straight through to whatever is inside. That is why the surviving military hammers of that period pair a blunt face with a long back spike.

What you have here is the Norse hammer as an object of meaning rather than a fifteenth century armour breaker. The twin flat faces and the heavy square head follow the shape of the hammer amulets pulled out of Scandinavian graves, scaled up to full size, and the Damascus and brass work put it in the hand as a piece to be looked at and held. Treat it as a display and ceremonial piece. It is not a sparring weapon and we make no battle ready claim for it.

The steel, the wood and the brass

The head is forge welded from alternating layers of 1095 high carbon steel and 15N20. The nickel in the 15N20 resists the acid etch while the 1095 darkens, and that difference in reaction is what draws the pattern you see. After the head is shaped and the eye is drifted, it is normalised, quenched and tempered to 58 to 60 HRC, then etched, neutralised and oiled.

The haft is rosewood, a dense oily hardwood that takes a deep polish and holds a pinned brass inlay without the wood shrinking away from the metal. Brass is used everywhere it touches wood on this piece for a practical reason as well as a visual one. It is soft enough to be peened over a pin and fitted tight, it does not rust, and where it meets steel it does not set up the galvanic corrosion you get from some other metal pairings. The pommel is turned rather than cast, so the profile is cut on a lathe and the tool lines are polished out by hand.

Engraving, runes and your own design

Use the rune converter on this page to turn a name, a date or a short phrase into Elder Futhark and we will cut it into the steel, the leather or the wood. If you would rather have a Viking pattern than a rune line, choose your own design in the engraving option above the add to cart button and tell us where it goes. Where a piece already carries an engraved design, your chosen engraving replaces it rather than sitting alongside it. On a hammer the cheeks of the head take a rune line well and the leather cover takes a name or a date. See the engraving page.

Handling and balance

The mass on this piece sits almost entirely in the head, which is exactly how a hammer should feel and exactly why it is nothing like a sword in the hand. Pick it up near the pommel and it wants to fall forward. Choke up under the brass bolster and it becomes controllable and surprisingly quick. The turned pommel is not decoration alone. It stops the hand sliding off the end when the haft is held low and it gives the piece a stable foot when you stand it upright on a shelf.

Because the head is hardened Damascus, do not strike anything with it. Hardened high carbon steel is strong in the direction it was made to work and it can chip when it is driven into another hard surface. Hold it, photograph it, hang it, stand it on a mantel, hand it to somebody at a wedding. Do not use it as a mallet.

Care

Damascus is high carbon steel and it rusts. Wipe the head after handling, because fingerprints are salty and acidic, and put a thin film of mineral oil or a light gun oil on it before the leather cover goes back on. Do not store it in the cover for long periods in a damp room, because leather holds moisture against steel. Brass will dull to a soft gold over time, which most people prefer, and a gentle brass polish will bring it back bright when you want it. Wipe the rosewood with a dry cloth and give it a little furniture or hardwood oil once a year. More on high carbon steel is on the steel care page.

Forged in Memphis

The billet is welded, the head is forged and drifted, the haft is shaped and fitted and the brass is turned and pinned in our own shop in Memphis, Tennessee. Nothing here comes out of an importer catalogue with a label swapped on it. That means a genuine lead time, so allow one to two weeks of processing before it ships, plus a few days if you have added an engraving. Shipping inside the United States is free, returns run for seven days, and the lifetime warranty against defects in forging, grind, heat treat and fittings has no end date and needs no receipt.

A note on handmade variation

This hammer is hand made, not machine made and not bulk produced, so what arrives will not be a pixel for pixel copy of the photograph. The Damascus pattern is different on every head because every billet draws out differently under the hammer, the etch takes with slightly different contrast, the rosewood grain and colour vary from stick to stick because it is a natural timber, and the brass carries the faint marks of being cut and polished by hand. The dimensions, the steel, the heat treat and the fittings are the same every time. The character is not.

Frequently asked questions

Is this a usable hammer

No. It is a display, collection and ceremonial piece. The head is hardened Damascus, which is made to hold a pattern and an edge rather than absorb repeated impact, so please do not drive nails or strike anything with it.

Is the pattern real Damascus

Yes. The head is forge welded from 1095 and 15N20 and then etched. The pattern runs through the body of the steel rather than sitting on the surface.

How heavy is it

It is head heavy and substantial. Every head is forged individually so weights vary a little between pieces, and we do not quote a single figure we cannot guarantee for your exact hammer.

Will the brass tarnish

Yes, slowly, to a warmer darker gold. That is normal for solid brass and is not a fault. A little brass polish takes it back to bright whenever you want.

Can I have runes cut into the head

Yes. The flat cheeks take a rune line cleanly. Use the rune converter on this page or send us your own design through the engraving option.

How long does it take to arrive

Processing is one to two weeks in the shop, then free shipping inside the United States. Engraving usually adds a few days on top.

What is in the box

• Hand forged 1095 and 15N20 Damascus war hammer with rosewood haft
• Brass bolster, pinned brass haft strips and turned brass pommel
• Shaped leather head cover
• Care card for high carbon Damascus steel
• Lifetime warranty against defects in forging, grind, heat treat and fittings
• Forged and finished in Memphis, Tennessee

Explore the range

See more in Thors hammers, the Viking weapons and the war axes, or read the guides on pattern welded steel.