Bluerune Hand Forged 1095 Steel Runic Knightly Sword | 38 Inch Overall | Blue Leather Grip and Scent Stopper Pommel | Medieval Collector Gift | RK-1859

The Bluerune is a knightly sword of the type that follows the Viking age directly, with a long tapering blade, a cross that curves gently toward the point, and a column of Elder Futhark runes cut into the flat above the guard. The grip is deep blue leather wound over a shaped wooden core with cord risers underneath, and the pommel is a faceted scent stopper form peened over the tang. A matching blue leather scabbard is included.

The shift from a Viking sword to a knightly sword is easy to see once you know what to look for. The pommel gets smaller and simpler, the grip gets longer, the guard grows from a stubby bar into a real cross, and the blade begins to taper toward a point instead of running almost parallel to the tip. Ewart Oakeshott spent a working lifetime sorting that development into a typology of blade shapes, and this sword sits in the earlier part of it. Forged, ground, hardened, cut and fitted in Memphis, Tennessee.

Specifications

Why the cross curves toward the blade

A straight cross stops a blade sliding down onto your fingers, which is most of the job. Curving the arms forward adds two things. The first is mechanical. An angled arm meets a descending blade at a shallower angle and turns it aside rather than taking the full force square on, so the sword deflects instead of jarring. The second is about the hand. With the arms swept forward there is room to lay a finger over the cross for point control without exposing it to anything coming down the edge.

The pommel is doing more than counterweighting. A scent stopper form, so called because it looks like the stopper of a perfume bottle, is faceted rather than round, which means it sits in the heel of the palm with a definite orientation. You can feel which way the edge is pointing without looking at the blade. On a longer sword like this, where the point is further from the hand, that feedback matters.

The rune column runs vertically down the widest part of the flat instead of horizontally along the fuller. That placement is a design choice rather than a historical one, and it makes a longer inscription readable when the sword hangs point down on a wall.

Steel, dyed leather and cord risers

The blade is 1095 high carbon steel at 54 to 58 HRC, satin finished so the cut runes read cleanly and handling marks do not stand out the way they would on a mirror. The taper is progressive, which is what moves the balance back toward the hand on a blade this long.

The grip has cord wound around the wooden core before the leather goes on. Those raised rings are called risers, and they are the reason a long grip does not turn into a smooth cylinder. Your hand registers against them so it always sits in the same place and cannot creep forward under a cut. The leather over them is vegetable tanned hide, dyed blue through rather than surface coated, which is why the colour goes darker at the edges and shows the grain rather than sitting on it like paint. Dyed leather does fade in strong sunlight, which is worth knowing before you hang the sword in a south facing window.

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 sword the rune column above the guard is that design, so your own inscription is cut in its place. The vertical column takes a longer line than a horizontal one, which makes this a good sword for a full name and a date. See the engraving page.

Handling and balance

This is the largest of our single handed swords at thirty eight inches overall, and it weighs close to two and three quarter pounds with the balance about four and a half inches ahead of the cross. It is unmistakably a cutting sword. The extra grip length lets you drop the last two fingers onto the pommel for leverage on a long cut, which is the transitional handling that leads eventually to the hand and a half sword.

This is a hand finished collector and display sword. It is not sold as full contact sparring equipment and should not be struck against another blade.

Care

Wipe the blade after handling and keep a light film of mineral oil on it. Use a soft brush to work oil into the cut runes so nothing sits in the strokes. Keep the dyed leather out of direct sunlight and away from heat, and feed the grip and scabbard with a neutral leather balm once or twice a year. A coloured balm will darken blue dye unevenly, so use a neutral one. Do not leave the sword stored in the scabbard for months. Our steel care page covers spotting and cleaning cut detail.

Forged in Memphis

Forged, ground, fullered, hardened, tempered, engraved, fitted and peened in our Memphis, Tennessee shop, with the grip core turned, corded and covered, and the scabbard built and dyed in the same building. There is no importer catalogue behind this sword and no factory blade with our name added later. Allow one to two weeks of processing while yours is made. Shipping inside the United States is free, returns run seven days, and the lifetime warranty against defects in forging, grind, heat treat and fittings has no end date and needs no receipt.

A note on handmade variation

This is hand made, not machine made and not bulk produced, so what arrives will not be a pixel for pixel copy of the photograph. Hand dyed leather is the biggest variable. Blue takes differently on every hide and the depth of colour on your grip and scabbard will be its own. The spacing of the cut runes, the facets on the pommel, the exact curve of the cross and the hammer texture under the satin all vary. The dimensions, the steel and the build are the same every time. The character is not.

Frequently asked questions

Can I have my own name in the runes?

Yes. Use the rune converter on this page and your inscription is cut into the column in place of the standard line.

Is the blue paint or dye?

It is dye, taken into vegetable tanned hide rather than sprayed onto the surface, which is why the grain still shows.

Will the colour fade?

In strong direct sunlight over years, yes. Hang it out of a sunbeam and it will hold.

Does it arrive sharp?

It comes with a clean cutting edge. Ask and we will finish it blunt for display instead.

Is this a two handed sword?

No. It is a long single handed sword. The extra grip length lets you brace a finger or two on the pommel but it is not a hand and a half hilt.

How long before it ships?

One to two weeks of processing, then free shipping inside the United States.

What is in the box

• One Bluerune runic knightly sword in 1095 high carbon steel
• One blue dyed leather over wood scabbard
• A light protective oil film on the blade
• Forged and finished in Memphis, Tennessee

Explore the range

More in arming swords, swords and Viking weapons, with typology and rune notes in the guides.