Materials

A new section being developed!  Check back often.  For now, see “Wood”.  The other sections contain links to relevant material elsewhere in this site.

The diversity of materials used in edged weapons reflects the geography, environment and culture of its origin of manufacture include trade with distant places. The multiplicity of types of materials provide strong clues to the location and date of a particular weapon in consideration. For example, we know that materials such as aluminum and tin were extremely scarce (if available at all) in islands of south east Asia. Following WWII, these materials appear in the decoration of traditional weapons.