Wolfgleam Hand Forged Damascus Roman Pugio Dagger | 16 Inch Overall | Twin Fullered Waisted Blade with Brass Faced Wooden Guard and Ribbed Hardwood Grip | Legionary Collector Gift | RK-1657

The Wolfgleam is a hand forged roman pugio dagger, the short broad sidearm carried by the legions. The blade is the true pugio shape, wide at the shoulder, waisted in the middle and swelling again before it draws to a point, with twin fullers sunk either side of a raised central rib. A running wolf is etched at the shoulder of the blade. The guard is turned hardwood faced with a brass plate, the ball pommel is turned hardwood with a small brass finial, the grip is a ribbed hardwood section between them, and it comes with a brown leather sheath with a brass throat plate, a brass chape and two brass suspension rings.

The pugio is one of the few Roman blades whose exact political importance is recorded. It was the standard belt dagger of the legionary, worn on the left hip on the balteus while the gladius hung on the right, and it was pugiones and not swords that the conspirators carried into the Senate on the Ides of March, because a man could hide a dagger under a toga and could not hide a sword. Suetonius counts twenty three wounds. The shape you are looking at is the reason a pugio was chosen for that work, since the wide waisted blade opens a wound out of all proportion to how far it goes in. This one is forged, ground, hardened and fitted in the Czech Republic. It is part of the gladius blades, and the short swords are put together the same way.

Specifications

Why the blade is waisted and ribbed

Look at the profile from the side. The blade narrows in the middle and widens again towards the point, which looks like decoration and is not. That waist puts the widest part of the steel well forward, so the mass sits ahead of the hand and a short blade still lands with authority. It also means the widest cross section arrives after the point has already opened the way, which is the whole design logic of a stabbing dagger.

The raised rib down the centre is doing structural work. A wide blade this short would flex badly if it were flat ground, and flex is what breaks points. Leaving a thick rib along the spine line and sinking a fuller either side of it produces a section that is stiff in the direction it needs to be stiff and light everywhere else. Roman smiths arrived at that solution by the first century and the shape barely changed for two hundred years afterwards, which is usually a sign that a design is finished rather than fashionable.

The steel, the brass and the wood

The blade is pattern welded Damascus, 1095 and 15N20 forge welded and hardened to 58 to 60 HRC. The nickel bearing 15N20 layers keep the point tough while the 1095 holds a keen edge, and the etch brings the layers up as the wavy figure along the flats. Fullers are ground rather than forged in, so the rib is left standing at full thickness and the two channels are cut cleanly to an even depth on both faces.

The guard and the pommel are turned hardwood, with a solid brass plate facing the guard where it meets the blade and a small brass finial on the pommel. The sheath mounts are solid brass too, so they wear to a warm colour and can be polished back at any point in their life. The grip is a close grained hardwood, turned and then ribbed so the fingers have something to register against under a thrust, and it is fitted over a full tang that runs to the pommel.

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 the Wolfgleam the running wolf is the existing design, so custom work takes its place at the blade shoulder. The brass guard plate and the sheath throat also take engraving well. See the engraving page.

Handling and balance

The balance point sits just in front of the guard, roughly an inch up the blade. That is a hand forward balance and it makes the dagger feel like an extension of the fist rather than something being swung. The ribbed grip and the ball pommel together mean the hand cannot slide backwards off the handle, which is the failure mode that matters on a thrusting blade.

This is a sharp hand forged dagger sold for collecting, display and reenactment kit. It is not for sparring or contact and it should not be thrown. Keep it sheathed when it is not in your hand and store it out of reach of children.

Care

The blade is Damascus, which is carbon steel under the pattern, and it will rust if it is left with fingerprints on it, particularly in the fullers where oil tends to be wiped out and moisture stays in. Wipe it down after handling and lay on a thin film of mineral oil. Do not store it long term in the leather sheath, since vegetable tanned hide holds moisture against steel. The brass will dull to a soft gold on its own, which most owners prefer, and a metal polish takes it back to bright whenever you want. Feed the sheath leather twice a year with neutral cream. There is more on steel care.

Made in the Czech Republic

This is a handmade piece from the Czech Republic, made in a workshop that still forges, grinds and finishes by hand instead of stamping parts out. The smiths there have kept the older way of working, and the wood, horn and leather are shaped and fitted by hand as well. Two pieces of the same design will never be identical, and that is part of what you are buying.

Ransack Viking is a United States company. We handle the import ourselves, look over every piece when it lands and ship from our warehouse in Chicago, Illinois. Engraving is done in the United States after the piece arrives, so your design goes on before we send it out.

A note on handmade variation

This dagger is hand made, not machine made or bulk produced, so what arrives will not be a pixel for pixel copy of the photograph. The waist of the blade is ground by eye, so the curve will be a shade fuller or slimmer than the one shown. The hardwood grip comes from a natural board and its grain and colour change from piece to piece. Brass varies in tone as it is worked. The length, the steel, the section, the fittings and the build are the same every time. The character is not. The long form of that is the blade shapes guide, with the knife laws by state next to it.

Frequently asked questions

Is this a gladius

No. A gladius is a short sword of about two feet. A pugio is the belt dagger that was worn opposite it, and this is a pugio.

Is it sharp when it arrives

Yes, both edges and the point carry a hand put working edge. Handle it as sharp from the moment the box is open.

Are the brass parts solid or plated

Solid brass, both the plate on the guard and the mounts on the sheath. Nothing here is a plated steel fitting.

Can the wolf be replaced with my own design

Yes. Your runes or chosen Viking pattern go in that same place at the blade shoulder instead of the wolf.

Can it be thrown

No. The tang, the wooden guard and the pommel are not built to take repeated impact, and throwing will loosen the handle.

How soon does it ship

One to two weeks while the blade is forged, fullered and fitted, then free shipping inside the United States.

What is in the box

• Wolfgleam roman pugio dagger with a twin fullered waisted blade
• Brass faced wooden guard and turned wooden ball pommel
• Brown leather sheath with brass throat, chape and two suspension rings
• Care card for Damascus steel and brass
• Lifetime warranty against defects, no receipt needed
• Forged and finished in the Czech Republic

Explore the range

See the rest of the daggers, the gladius range, the wider swords, and the guides for how fullers are ground.

Also in this part of the catalogue

Next along the rack is the Ironlegion gladius. For a straight comparison, see the Legionward gladius, 27 inches overall. Worth putting side by side with this is the Bonelegion gladius, 27 inches overall.

If you are putting a set together, the Greyward arming sword sits alongside it. Or start from a blank sheet on the custom Viking sword page.