Duskmere Hand Forged Damascus Wakizashi | Deep Curved Single Edge Blade | Celtic Knot Engraved Collar with Cord Wrapped Grip and Black Lacquered Saya | Norse Collector Gift | RK-2012

The Duskmere is a wakizashi, the shorter companion blade of the Japanese pair, built here with a hand forged Damascus blade and a pronounced curve that carries almost the whole length of the steel. The collar above the guard is engraved with a circular Celtic knot, the guard itself is a plain oval steel plate, and the grip is bound in black cord over a pale textured underlay that shows through in a row of diamonds. It comes with a black lacquered scabbard and a fitted cord.

The wakizashi has a legal history as well as a martial one. Under the Tokugawa shogunate the right to wear the long and short swords together as a matched pair was reserved for the samurai class, and wearing them was as much a licence as an armament. Townspeople, merchants and travellers were not permitted the long sword, but they were allowed the short one, so the wakizashi became the blade that ordinary people actually owned and carried on the road. It was also the sword kept indoors, since the long blade was surrendered at the door of a house while the short one stayed on the belt. A great deal of the surviving decorative fitting work from the period is on wakizashi rather than on katana for exactly that reason.

Every Duskmere is made by hand in the Czech Republic. Ransack Viking imports them, inspects each one for grind, fit and finish, and ships from our warehouse in Memphis, Tennessee. It arrives with its lacquered scabbard and a lifetime warranty against defects in forging, grind, heat treat and fittings, with no end date and no receipt needed.

A wakizashi is the shorter blade of the pair, and what a wakizashi is covers where it sat in the kit. Insular knotwork travelled with the Norse and came back changed, and the symbols guide covers the shapes that recur. The tanto knives use the same fittings at knife length.

Specifications

What the deep curve actually buys you

Look along the spine and you will see the curve is not an even arc. It is deepest toward the grip and flattens out as it runs to the point, which is the shape a blade takes when a hard edge and a softer spine cool at different rates rather than a shape that is bent in afterwards. On a short sword that curve matters more than it does on a long one. A shorter blade cannot borrow much reach, so it earns its cutting from geometry instead. Put a curve into the edge and any cut becomes a slice, because the contact point travels along the edge as the blade passes through rather than crashing into the target all at once. That is why a curved short blade cuts far better than its length suggests it should.

The Celtic knot engraved into the collar is a modern crossover rather than a traditional Japanese motif, which we would rather say plainly. It is an interlaced circular knot with no beginning and no end, one of the commonest forms in Insular manuscript and metalwork, and it is cut into the steel rather than plated or printed on.

The steel and how it is hardened

The blade is pattern welded from 1095 and 15N20, two carbon steels chosen because they weld cleanly to each other and etch to different tones. Layers are forge welded into a billet, drawn, folded and welded again until the count runs into the hundreds, then ground and etched. The nickel content in 15N20 shrugs off the acid and stays bright, the 1095 goes dark, and that is the flowing pattern you can see running the whole length of this blade. It is structural. Sharpening will never take it off.

Hardness is 58 to 60 HRC, which is where a carbon blade takes a fine edge and holds it while keeping enough toughness in the body to flex rather than break. The edge bevel is finished by hand on stones and reads as a brighter band against the etched flats above.

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 this wakizashi that means the Celtic knot on the collar can be swapped for your own mark, or a rune line can go on the flat of the blade above it and leave the knot where it is. See the engraving page for lettering sizes and lead times.

Handling and balance

A wakizashi is a one handed sword. The grip is long enough for a second hand to help but it is not built for two hands the way a katana is, and the balance sits close to the guard so the whole thing turns off the wrist. Held properly the little finger does most of the gripping and the index finger barely closes, which is what lets the edge stay aligned through a cut. The deep curve near the grip means the point travels a long way for a small movement of the hand, so it feels quicker than its weight suggests.

This is a sharp, hardened sword. It is not a sparring sword and should never be struck against another blade or against a hard target. Treat it as a cutting sword and a display piece.

Care

Carbon Damascus needs oil and attention. Wipe the blade down with a dry cloth after every handling session, because the salt in a fingerprint will start a rust spot within days in a humid room, then lay on a thin film of mineral oil or blade oil before it goes back into the scabbard. Never sheathe a blade that is damp. Take it out and look at it every few weeks rather than leaving it shut away for a year. Surface rust lifts with oil and a nylon pad, and abrasive paper must be kept away from the flats because it will cut through the etch. More detail is in steel care.

The lacquered scabbard cleans with a soft dry cloth. Keep solvents and alcohol wipes off it, since both will dull the lacquer. The cord can be sponged with a barely damp cloth and left to dry away from heat.

Damascus wants oil more than plain steel does, because the etch that shows the pattern also opens the surface, and caring for a Damascus pattern covers what to use.

Made in the Czech Republic

This wakizashi is made by hand in the Czech Republic, forged, ground, polished and fitted by people who do this work for a living. Nothing here comes out of an importer catalogue and nothing is drop shipped. Ransack Viking buys the pieces, checks each one on arrival in Memphis, and ships the ones that pass. Because they are made in small runs, allow one to two weeks of processing before an order goes out. Shipping inside the United States is free.

A note on handmade variation

This is a hand made sword, not a machine made or bulk produced one, so what arrives will not be a pixel for pixel copy of the photograph. Damascus is a live pattern and no two billets ever fold the same way, so the flow of layers along your blade will be unique to it. The etch tone shifts a little from batch to batch, the hardened edge line wanders differently on every blade, the knot on the collar is engraved by hand and lands fractionally differently, and the lacquer on the scabbard is laid on by hand. The dimensions, the material and the build are the same every time. The character is not.

Frequently asked questions

How is a wakizashi different from a katana

Length and intent. A wakizashi is the shorter blade of the traditional pair, made to be worked in one hand and carried where a long sword was not welcome. This one has the same forging and the same fittings quality as a full length sword in a shorter, faster package.

Does it come sharp

Yes. The edge is brought up by hand before shipping. If you want it delivered blunt as a display piece, say so in the order notes and we will do that instead.

Is the scabbard real lacquer or paint

It is a lacquered finish over wood, applied and polished by hand, which is why the gloss varies slightly along its length. Clean it with a dry cloth only and keep solvents away from it.

Can I hang it on a wall

Yes, and it displays well either horizontally on a rack or standing in the scabbard. Keep it out of a bathroom or an unheated garage, because carbon steel and swinging humidity do not get along.

Can the Celtic knot be replaced with my own engraving

Yes. Choose your own design in the engraving option and tell us where it goes. If you pick the collar, your design replaces the knot rather than sitting next to it.

When will it ship

Allow one to two weeks for processing while the piece is checked and any engraving is cut, then normal transit time. Shipping within the United States is free and it leaves from our Memphis warehouse.

What is in the box

• Duskmere Damascus wakizashi
• Black lacquered scabbard with retaining cord
• Blade lightly oiled for transit
• Lifetime warranty against defects in forging, grind, heat treat and fittings
• Hand made in the Czech Republic, shipped from our Memphis, Tennessee warehouse

Explore the range

See also wakizashi, Damascus swords and short swords, or read the guides for steel and care.