Tidefork Hand Forged Damascus War Trident | 14 Inch Three Prong Head | Ebony Haft with Brass Collar and Butt Cap | Norse Display Gift | RK-1592

The Tidefork is a three prong war trident forged from 1095 and 15N20 Damascus. The centre prong stands proud of the two outer tines, the shoulders between them are cut square and clean, and the wide plate at the base carries a deeply engraved Vegvisir with a line of Elder Futhark beneath it. Below the plate the tang runs into a turned brass collar, then a length of dark ebony, then a brass butt cap that both protects the end grain and moves the balance point back toward the rear hand.

The trident is one of the oldest tool shapes there is. In Scandinavia it survives in the archaeology as the leister, a fish spear whose outer prongs pinched a salmon against the centre point while the fisherman lifted. In the Mediterranean the same head became a Roman arena trident in the hands of the retiarius. This one is built as a Norse display and collection piece with real forged steel behind it. It is forged, ground, etched and assembled in a Czech Republic workshop and carries our lifetime warranty against defects in forging, grind, heat treat and fittings, with no end date and no receipt needed.

Specifications

Why three prongs and not one

A single point has to be placed exactly. Three points spread across six inches of width do not. That is the whole logic of the fork head, and it is why the shape turns up independently in fishing cultures from Norway to Japan without anyone borrowing it from anyone else. The outer tines act as guides. Whatever slides between them is funnelled into the centre point and then held there, because the gap between the prongs is narrower than the thing that went in.

The second thing three prongs give you is grip on a shaft. Bring the fork down over another spear or a staff and the outer tines box it in, so a quarter turn of the wrist traps it. That is the mechanic the retiarius used with his net and fork against a heavily armoured opponent, and it is the reason the shape reads as a fighting fork rather than a farm tool.

On the Tidefork the prongs are forged from a single Damascus billet rather than welded on separately. That matters. A trident with brazed or pinned tines has three weak joints exactly where the load lands. Here the metal is continuous from the base plate to each point, so a hard press against a hard object loads the whole plate rather than a seam.

The steel and the fittings

The billet is 1095 high carbon steel folded with 15N20. The 15N20 carries nickel, which resists the acid we etch with, so it stays bright while the 1095 darkens. That difference in tone is the pattern you can see running across the plate and up into the prongs. After forging the head is normalised to relieve the stresses that folding puts into a bar, then hardened and tempered to 58 to 60 HRC.

The Vegvisir on the plate is cut after heat treat, not stamped before it, so the lines stay crisp instead of blurring in the quench. The haft is ebony, a dense oily tropical hardwood that takes a shine straight from the abrasive without needing lacquer. Ebony is heavy for its size, and on a piece like this that is useful because it keeps the balance point close to the rear hand rather than out at the prongs. The brass collar is turned from bar and pinned through, and the butt cap is a separate turning that threads and glues onto the end.

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 Tidefork that means your runes take the place of the Vegvisir and the futhark line already on the base plate, so ask for what you actually want. Everything is explained on the engraving page.

Balance and handling

At about thirty six inches overall this is a short hafted piece, closer to a boar spear length than a battlefield polearm. Assembled, it balances about four inches ahead of the brass collar, which is a long way back for a head this size and is entirely down to the ebony and the brass butt cap. Held in two hands it feels controlled rather than head heavy, and the ebony is thin enough to close a hand around properly.

The prongs arrive with a working point on each. This is a collection and display trident and it is not sold for battle ready or full contact sparring. It should not be used against another person, and it is not for throwing. If you want to hang it, the head cover keeps the points safe and the ebony takes a wall bracket without splitting.

Care

Damascus is high carbon steel and it will spot if it stays damp. Wipe the head after handling, particularly between the prongs where a cloth does not reach easily, and use a cotton bud with a little mineral oil in the shoulders. A thin film of paste wax on the plate is the easiest long term protection for a piece that lives on a wall. Do not leave the leather cover on the head in a humid room. Full guidance is on our steel care page. Ebony needs almost nothing beyond an occasional wipe with a lightly oiled cloth, and the brass will dull to a soft gold that comes back with any metal polish and a cotton rag.

Made in the Czech Republic

Every piece we sell is made by hand in the Czech Republic. The smiths there work the way the trade has been worked for a long time, heating and hammering the steel, taking the bevels down by eye, and fitting the handle and the leather one at a time. There is no automated line anywhere in it, so small differences from one piece to the next are normal and expected.

Ransack Viking is a United States company based in Memphis, Tennessee. We bring the pieces in ourselves, inspect them on arrival and ship them from our own warehouse. If you add engraving, that is carried out here in the United States before your order goes out.

A note on handmade variation

This is hand made, not machine made or bulk produced, so what arrives will not be a pixel for pixel copy of the photograph. Every Damascus billet we weld draws out differently, so the pattern on your base plate and prongs will be its own. Ebony varies from near black to a streaked brown with paler grain running through it, and no two hafts shape the same. The dimensions, the material and the build are the same every time. The character is not.

Frequently asked questions

Are the prongs sharp

Each prong is ground to a working point and the leading edges are taken to a shallow bevel. It is not a razor edge, but it will penetrate, which is why the head ships with a leather cover over it.

Is this a battle ready trident

No. It is a forged collection and display piece built from real Damascus. We do not sell it for full contact sparring and it should not be used against another person.

What does the Vegvisir on the plate mean

It is an Icelandic stave first recorded in the nineteenth century Huld manuscript, described there as a sign to help the bearer find the way in bad weather. It is post Viking in date but firmly Norse in tradition.

Can I have my own runes instead

Yes. Custom engraving replaces the Vegvisir and the futhark line rather than joining them, so tell us in the order notes exactly what you want on the plate.

Can it be mounted on a longer haft

Not without rebuilding it. The ebony is fitted, pinned and capped as one assembly. If you want a six foot version, contact us before ordering and we will quote a long haft build.

Will the ebony crack

Ebony is stable once it is dry and finished, but like any dense hardwood it does not enjoy going straight from a cold delivery truck to a hot dry room. Let it sit in the box for a few hours before you unwrap it in winter.

What is in the box

• One Tidefork Damascus war trident, head fitted to the ebony haft
• One folded leather head cover
• Care card and lifetime warranty note
• Forged and finished in the Czech Republic

Explore the range

Browse the glaives and polearms, the Viking spears, the full Norse arms range, or read the guides.