Azurehewn Hand Forged 1095 Steel Viking Sword | 37 Inch Overall | Brass Faceted Pommel and Blue Leather Grip with Matching Blue Leather Scabbard | Norse Wedding Gift | RK-1892

Azurehewn is a single hand Viking sword with a long slim double edged blade, a straight steel crossguard whose tips are flared and chamfered, a grip wrapped in deep blue leather laid in raised turns, and a faceted brass pommel shaped like a stopper. A band of interlaced Norse knotwork is etched into the blade just above the guard, sitting alongside the shallow fuller that runs down the centre of the blade. It comes with a blue leather scabbard cut to the same blade.

Colour on a Viking hilt is not a modern invention. Grave finds from Birka and Gnezdovo turn up hilts with silver and copper wire inlaid into the iron in contrasting stripes, and the leather and textile fragments that survive around them are often dyed, most commonly with woad, which gives exactly this range of blue. A bright hilt was a statement about who owned it. Azurehewn is forged, ground, hardened, hilted and finished by hand by hand in the Czech Republic, and it ships with its scabbard, a care card and our lifetime warranty.

Pommel, fuller and grip length are what separate a good Norse sword from a prop, and what to look for in a Viking sword goes through them. 1095 is the plain carbon steel we work in, and the steel glossary explains what the number means and why it takes an edge. A board from the round shields is what usually stands beside one.

Specifications

Why the pommel is brass and the guard is steel

Mixing metals on a hilt is a working decision before it is a decorative one. Brass is roughly ten percent denser than steel, so a brass pommel of a given size counterweights more blade than a steel one of the same shape, which lets us keep the pommel compact and still pull the balance point back where the hand wants it. Brass is also softer, so it takes a peen cleanly without cracking and it can be filed to a crisp facet by hand. The guard stays steel because that is the piece that takes impact, and brass in that position would deform. Norse smiths made the same split constantly, pairing iron guards with bronze or copper alloy pommels and terminal caps, and the colour contrast you see here is a side effect of that engineering rather than a paint choice.

1095 steel and how we treat it

1095 carries about one percent carbon and almost nothing else. In a sword that simplicity is a virtue, because the smith is not fighting alloying elements during the quench and the finished blade fails by bending rather than by shattering. We normalise the blade three times to refine grain, quench in warm oil, then temper it back to 54 to 58 HRC. That is intentionally lower than knife hardness. A 31 inch blade must flex under lateral load and come back straight, and steel run too hard will take a permanent set or crack instead. The guard is polished and left bright. The brass pommel is filed, sanded and hand buffed, so it starts warm gold and will darken over years into a deeper honey tone.

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 Azurehewn the knotwork band above the guard is the natural place for a rune line, and the brass pommel takes a small mark cleanly. Lettering samples and depth notes are on the engraving page.

Handling and balance

The balance point sits about four and a half inches ahead of the guard. The blade is slimmer than the arming swords we build with broader profiles, so it feels quicker in the hand and recovers faster from a cut, at the cost of a little cleaving mass. The raised turns on the grip are not only decorative. They give the palm something to index against, so you can tell by feel which way the edge is pointing without looking, which is the whole reason grip wraps were ridged. This is a sharpened functional sword sold for collecting, display and dry handling. We do not sell it for full contact sparring or for cutting hard targets.

Care

Wipe the blade after every handling session, because fingerprints on 1095 turn into etched marks in a humid room within a few days. Keep a light film of mineral oil on the steel. Brass does not rust but it tarnishes, so give the pommel an occasional rub with a soft cloth and only use metal polish if you actually want it bright, since many owners prefer the darker patina it grows. Do not leave the sword sheathed in the leather scabbard for long storage. Leather traps moisture against steel. Feed the scabbard with a neutral leather cream twice a year and keep the blue out of direct sun so the dye holds. Our notes on rust and finishes are in the guide to steel care.

If it is going on a wall, hanging swords and axes safely covers mounts, fixings and what not to do.

Made in the Czech Republic

The work behind this piece happens in a Czech Republic workshop that has kept to the old methods. Steel is forged and heat treated by hand, the grind is taken down by eye rather than by machine, and the handle, fittings and sheath are cut and finished one at a time. Because of that, every piece carries small marks of the hand that made it.

Ransack Viking is a United States company. We import direct, check each piece when it reaches us, and ship from our Memphis, Tennessee warehouse. Engraving is added here in the United States after arrival, so the piece you receive is finished to your order.

A note on handmade variation

This sword is hand made, not machine made or bulk produced, so what arrives will not be a pixel for pixel copy of the photograph. The blue of the leather shifts a little between hides because dye takes differently on different grain, the facets on the brass pommel are filed by eye so no two catch light identically, the knotwork etch varies in depth, and the hammer texture near the tang is unique to each blade. The dimensions, the steel, the heat treat and the build are the same every time. The character is not.

Frequently asked questions

Will the blue leather fade?

Dyed leather lightens slowly in strong sunlight. Kept out of a south facing window and fed twice a year, the grip and scabbard will hold their colour for many years and deepen rather than wash out.

Is this a one handed or two handed sword?

One handed. The grip is four and a half inches, which suits a single hand with the heel of the palm against the pommel. It is not long enough for a genuine two handed grip.

Does the brass pommel need polishing?

Only if you want it bright. Brass tarnishes to a warm brown over a year or two, which many owners prefer. A soft cloth and a little metal polish brings it back whenever you choose.

Can I get a name in runes on the blade?

Yes. Use the rune converter, choose the engraving option, and tell us to put it on the blade. Your line replaces the etched knotwork band rather than joining it.

Is the scabbard rigid or soft?

It is leather over a wood core, so it holds its shape and protects the edge. It is cut to this blade, not a generic sleeve, and the throat grips the blade without a strap.

Would this work as a wedding or groomsman gift?

It is one of the pieces people most often order for that. The blade takes a date or two names in runes cleanly, and the blue hilt photographs well against most suit colours.

What is in the box

• Azurehewn Viking sword in 1095 high carbon steel with a brass pommel
• Blue leather scabbard cut to this blade
• Care card covering oiling, brass patina and leather feeding
• Lifetime warranty against defects in forging, grind, heat treat and fittings
• Forged and finished in the Czech Republic

Explore the range

Browse the rest of the Viking swords, the arming swords, the wedding and groomsmen gifts, and the guides.