Nightbough Hand Forged 1095 Steel Blackened Arming Sword with Yggdrasil Tree Pommel & Cord Wrapped Grip | 37 Inch Overall | Downswept Guard and Black Scabbard | Norse Collector Gift | RK-1993

Nightbough is a single hand medieval arming sword finished black from tip to pommel, with one deliberate exception. The edge bevels are left bright, so a thin line of polished steel runs the length of each edge and the black flats sit between them like a shadow. The guard is a slim downswept bar that curves toward the point at both ends, the grip is wound in fine black cord over a shaped core, and the pommel is a faceted multi sided cap carrying a circular Yggdrasil panel, the world tree with its branches above and its roots below in a single interlocked disc. A small etched roundel sits on the blade just above the guard.

The tree on the pommel is the reason for the name. In Norse cosmology Yggdrasil is the ash that holds the nine worlds together, with the well of Urd at its foot, a serpent gnawing its root and an eagle at its crown, and a squirrel named Ratatoskr running messages of insult between the two. It is not a symbol of peace. It is a picture of a structure under permanent stress that holds anyway, which is a fair thing to put on the pommel of a sword. This piece is hand made in the Czech Republic. Ransack Viking imports it, checks the black finish for thin spots, the guard seating and the cord tension, and ships it from our Chicago, Illinois warehouse. It arrives with the black scabbard shown.

If you have seen the phrase battle ready and wondered what it covers, display or battle ready explains it. Yggdrasil is the ash that holds the nine worlds together, and the world tree covers what the sources say. The medieval helmets are the obvious thing to hang beside it.

Specifications

What a black finish is and why the edges stay bright

Blackening steel is old. The traditional method is a controlled oxide layer, the same family of process that gives a gun barrel its blue or a Japanese fitting its patina. Instead of letting the steel form loose red rust, you force it to form a tight adherent magnetite skin, which is chemically stable, sits only microns thick and takes on a colour anywhere from deep blue to near black depending on the process and the steel. It changes nothing about the hardness underneath and it adds a real if modest amount of corrosion resistance, because the oxide is already the oxidised form and holds oil well.

The reason the edge bevels are left bright on this sword is partly aesthetic and partly practical. Aesthetically it draws the eye down the length of the blade and makes the profile read clearly against a dark background, which is exactly what the woodland photographs above are doing. Practically, the last thing that happens to a sword blade is that the edge is ground and polished, and any finish applied before that gets removed in the process. Leaving the bevels bright is honest about the order of operations. It also means you can see the edge condition at a glance, which a fully black blade hides.

The downswept guard is a real medieval form rather than a modern invention. Guards that curve toward the point appear across the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries and they do two jobs at once: the curve gives a little more reach to the tips without adding length across the blade, and it puts the ends slightly ahead of the hand so a blade sliding down yours is more likely to be caught than to run over the top.

1095 high carbon steel under the black

Under the finish this is a 1095 blade, a plain high carbon steel with about one percent carbon and very little alloy content. It is the standard choice for hand forged blades because it is honest to work: it moves predictably, quenches cleanly and lets a smith put the hardness exactly where it belongs. This one is taken to 54 to 58 HRC. For a long blade that band matters more than raw hardness numbers. Below it the edge will not hold. Above it the blade gains edge retention but loses the toughness that lets thirty inches of steel bend and come back straight instead of taking a set or cracking.

Black oxide is not paint and it is not a plating. It is thin enough that it does not hide the geometry underneath, which is why you can still read the diamond section of the blade and the facets on the pommel clearly. It is also thin enough that it is not armour. A hard knock on a stone edge will take it back to bright steel in that spot, and that spot will then need oil like any other bare carbon steel.

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 a blackened sword an engraved line cuts through the finish to bright steel underneath, which gives excellent contrast and is the reason black blades are such good candidates for a rune line. Engraving is done here in the United States after the sword arrives. Placement options are on the engraving page.

Handling and balance

The grip takes a full fist with a little room to move, and the faceted pommel sits behind the hand as a counterweight rather than as decoration. The cord binding gives a drier, grippier hold than smooth leather, particularly if your hands are warm, and it is the reason this sword feels more secure than its slim hilt suggests. The balance point sits close enough to the guard that the point comes up easily and the sword changes line from the wrist.

This is a collector and display sword. It is a genuinely forged blade with a genuine heat treat, but it has not been proofed for full contact sparring against another blade and it should not be used for that. Handle it, hang it, keep the black finish clean.

Care

A black oxide finish holds oil better than bright steel, but it is not a shield. Wipe the sword down after handling, because the acid in a fingerprint will eventually mark the finish and leave a visible print, and keep a light film of oil on it. Mineral oil, camellia oil or a light gun oil all work equally well. Pay particular attention to the bright edge bevels, which are bare carbon steel and will rust before anything else on the sword does. Do not use abrasive polish or a scouring pad anywhere on the black surfaces, since that removes the finish rather than cleaning it. Cord grips want to stay dry. Our steel care notes cover the rest.

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

This sword is hand made in the Czech Republic by people who make blades for a living. It is not pulled off an importer catalogue and relabelled. Ransack Viking brings the pieces in, unwraps every one, checks the black finish for thin spots and holidays, the seating of the guard against the shoulders, the peening at the pommel, the tension of the cord binding and the fit of the blade in the scabbard, and only then does it go on the shelf in our Chicago, Illinois warehouse. Processing runs one to two weeks and longer with engraving, because that work is done here in the United States after the sword arrives. Shipping inside the United States is free. Returns are accepted within seven days. There is a genuine lifetime warranty against defects in forging, grind, heat treat and fittings, with no end date and no receipt needed.

A note on handmade variation

This sword is hand made rather than machine made or bulk produced, so what arrives will not be a pixel for pixel copy of the photograph. Black finishes are the clearest case of that. Depth of colour shifts with the exact chemistry of the batch and the surface texture underneath, so one sword reads charcoal and the next reads near true black, and neither is wrong. The width of the bright edge bevel varies a little with how the edge was ground. The Yggdrasil panel is cut to the same design but sits a fraction differently in its recess on each pommel, and the cord binding is wound by hand so the pitch of the wraps is never identical. The steel, the dimensions and the build are the same every time. The character is not.

Frequently asked questions

Will the black finish rub off?

Not with normal handling. It is an oxide finish in the steel surface rather than a paint layer sitting on top, so it does not flake or peel. It will wear thin at high contact points over years, and a hard strike against stone or metal will take it back to bright steel in that spot.

What is the symbol on the pommel?

It is Yggdrasil, the world tree of Norse cosmology, shown as a single disc with the crown above and the root system below. It is not a Vegvisir, a Valknut or a Helm of Awe, all of which are different staves entirely.

Is it sharp when it arrives?

It comes with a working edge on the bright bevels rather than a razor edge. Say so in the order notes if you would prefer it delivered blunt and we will take the edge back before it ships.

Can I use it for reenactment or sparring?

No. It is a display and collector sword and it has not been proofed for full contact use. Use a purpose built blunt if you need something to fight with.

Will an engraving show up on a black blade?

Yes, and better than on a bright one. Cutting through the black finish exposes bright steel, so a rune line reads as light on dark with no need for any fill or infill.

How long does it take to arrive?

Processing is one to two weeks from our Chicago warehouse, a little longer with engraving because that is cut here in the United States after the sword arrives. Shipping within the United States is free.

What is in the box

• Nightbough blackened arming sword in 1095 high carbon steel
• Black scabbard
• Protective wrap and a padded shipping carton
• Care card covering oiling, the bright edge bevels and storage
• Hand made in the Czech Republic, shipped from our Chicago, Illinois warehouse

Explore the range

See more in arming swords, Viking swords, the wider sword range and sword stands and displays. Background reading lives in the guides.

Other pieces in this group

Another in the same line is the Wolfbrand arming sword, 36 inches overall. Next along the rack is the Serpentward arming sword, high carbon steel. For a straight comparison, see the Pathstave arming sword, 35 inches overall.

The Rhinewarden Viking sword covers the other half of the same kit. Nothing here exactly right, build one to your own spec on the custom Viking sword page.

For partner drills and sparring we carry the Draugmoor blunt longsword, and our first HEMA sword guide is a good place to start.