The rapier is a long, slender, sharply pointed sword built for the thrust, carried in Europe from the sixteenth century as a civilian side arm rather than a battlefield weapon.The hilt is half the swordBecause there is no shield and no gauntlet, the hand has to be protected by the sword itself. That produced the swept hilt, a cage of curved bars, and later the cup hilt, a solid dish of steel. The complexity of the hilt is a direct consequence of the duel.Ours are hand-forged from high-carbon steel with wire-wrapped grips.Please check your local law before ordering.