A short sword is anything between a long knife and a proper one hander, roughly 21 to 32 inches overall. The point of the length is control. You can draw it indoors, swing it without clearing a room, and carry it on a belt without it dragging. Historically that made it a sidearm for people who fought in tight spaces, sailors especially, and it makes it the sensible first sword for anyone who has never owned one.
The blades gathered here
Lengths run from a 21 inch Viking short sword with a triple fullered blade and a ribbed leather grip up to a 32 inch skull sword with a blackened guard and a chevron etched blade. In between sit naval and pirate cutlasses at 30 and 31 inches with 24 and 25 inch blades, a Renaissance short sword at 31 inches, a leaf bladed piece with a downswept engraved crossguard and a veg tan sheath, a Celtic sword at 30 inches with a cord wrapped grip and an engraved disc pommel, a Roman gladius with a blackened ridged blade, a lion head short sword at 26 inches with brass fittings, a hunting hanger at about 28 inches with an engraved brass shell guard, and wakizashi at 28 inches in both plain steel and ladder pattern Damascus. There are sawback pieces too: a 25 inch Damascus sword with a serrated spine and a 26 inch machete with an etched knotwork panel. Steel is plain 1095 high carbon at 54 to 58 HRC or forge welded 1095 and 15N20 Damascus at 58 to 60 HRC, and almost everything ships with a fitted leather scabbard. Prices run from 269 dollars to 599 dollars.
Where to start
Short blades are the honest entry point, because a 30 inch sword tells you quickly whether you actually want a 45 inch one. Our guide to buying a first sword covers weight, balance and the questions worth asking before you spend. To shop by shape, the full range is in short swords, the curved naval blades are in cutlasses, and the Roman pattern has its own shelf in gladius.
Ransack Viking is a US company based in Chicago, Illinois. These pieces are handmade in the Czech Republic, then imported, inspected and shipped from Chicago. Engraving is done in the US after arrival: text 19 dollars, symbol 39 dollars, family crest 49 dollars.
Free US shipping
On most pieces. Heavier and oversized ones carry a flat charge.
Hand Forged
Heated, hammered and ground by hand.
Engraving available
Names, dates or Norse runes on most pieces.
