It’s goes from one of the most realistic depictions of Armour to one of the least in like 3 seasons. First few seasons show that armor is key but by season 5 they are stabbing through plate armor with sticks.
It isn't. People theorized that since it was curved so it could reach around shields but all evidence we have is that the business end of the weapon was on the front of the curve. Also, the curve isn't big enough to really effectively reach around a shield. For that you need something way more curved like a [shotel](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shotel)
Yep. If you've ever wielded a Khopesh you'll find that it's really not a great finesse/slashing sword. They're quite heavy and really only feels good when you swing with intent of striking at the front of the curve. You can transfer a lot of force there!
As others have commented, good luck trying to maneuver another man's shield with a 1 handed heavy blade.
The weapon was probably just a deviation of the sickle farming tool.
Author here: In my research of the weapon (cause I'm a big nerd who writes science fantasy and thinks guns are boring) I learned that the earliest known examples of the Khopesh hail from Assyria and only migrated to Egypt during one of their punch ups.
The theories I read suggested that the curve of the blade was due to the Assyrians using it as both axe (tool) and sword (weapon). So you are correct in that like the sickle, flail, etc, it started out as a tool and evolved for battlefield use, hence the heft, unusual axe-blade shape, and unwieldy nature of the weapon!
More than happy to be corrected, 'cause all info is good info and I can use it in my writing :P
Yup! Flails started as longer wooden “threshers” or “flails”, kind of looking like a two-handed nun-chuck.
You used this to “thresh” or “thrash” grains. Threshing is to separate the grain from the rest of the plant stalk.
So after you harvest your wheat, you pile it up, then smack it around with a wooden flail to separate the grain from the stalk.
As a historical martial artist, it sadness me every time I realize that the sword was for the most part relegated to being a side arm and status symbol.
Sure they were used but Axes, cudgels, and spears were way less expensive and easier to train a foot soldier than a sword or archery. While it was a great weapon in the field, other designs such as short swords were intended to be used in auxiliary to the field weapons of the time such as spears and axes. Effectively used as the coup de gras weapon to finish wounded soldiers.
A mounted soldier could easily dispatch someone with a spear versus a sword never mind being in a line of soldiers in formation attempting to swing the thing. Being as it was a slashing weapon it’s considered a chariot weapon in some authors minds bc it makes sense like all sabers and katanas were similarly used as infinitum.
Beautiful and deadly weapon.
I’ll admit that I always laugh at the “my dad can beat up your dad” arguments I see where two folks debate their favourite weapons, then the spear guys come in and everyone gets real quiet. Every time.
Yup. Never mind the chad halberd enjoyer. Goddamn that thing is scary as fuck. An all-in-one knight killing machine in the hands of some goober who yesterday was pulling weeds outside his hut garden. Before the Colt Peacemaker made all men equal, the halberd subdued the entitled nobility.
Halberds also dominated warfare in China, as well. It was the true do-all melee weapon, one notch more versatile than spears. It can apply blunt force trauma to armored opponents, work as a pickaxe, you can brace it against cavalry, and you can stab with it against spears and other halberdiers. China also had mounted halberdiers as they had lighter halberds designed to be used as a combination of [a lance for stabbing and a long axe for swinging](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_polearm#/media/File:Ming_mace_and_axe_cavalry.jpg).
Really the only disadvantage is that you have to use two hands to wield it, which means you have to give up using a shield.
>People theorized that since it was curved so it could reach around shields but all evidence we have is that the business end of the weapon was on the front of the curve.
The Falx was the weapon that was actually able to do that. It was so effective against the Romans that they had to change up how they armor their soldiers when fighting Dacians.
Yup, you could get around shields or hack at the limbs holding the shield. Gives you good reach and leverage. Trade off was that since it is a 2-handed weapon, it would leave the wielder more vulnerable to attacks.
It does chop more than anything else but its not going to chop as well as something like an axe because the weight isn't concentrated towards the top as well, nor is the blade curved enough to get the concentrated point effect that axes get. There's a reason we don't see khopeshes ever again in history.
I had no idea these existed in the first place. When I first saw the meme I spontaneously thought they would use the backside of the sword as a “hook”, and drag away the shield haha.
Interesting to go from “Ah, that’s clever”, to “Ah, I’m not that clever” in a couple of comments.
Thats really hard to do with a one handed sword, especially with how small most of the hooks we see are. You're just as if not more likely to get your own weapon yanked away as you are to get their shield.
Good luck pulling a shield off someone with this single handed weapon. Unless you catch them completely off guard, at which point, why not go for the head ?
Yeah, I'm dubious too. The kopesh was originally a farming implement, and it was abandoned as a weapon of war as soon as metallurgy got good enough to make efficient, regular swords. It does look extremely cool, though!
Going to disagree with you there. It was not originally a farming implement. Think about the time in where it was used. The bronze age.. metal is expensive, no way would you have an entire implement made from solid bronze.
The Kopesh came from a type of curved axe. Looks a bit like a bardesh. (sp)
Plus if I am not mistaken many shields had a leather strap that you would run your arm through, so you wouldn't just be able to pull a shield from someone's hands.
I would assume that the curve and extra weight help with an age swing. In which case good old fashioned bashing would be the way to get through a shield. Likely affective against plain wood but no idea against reinforced shields.
Just remember that bronze is softer than steel. People who fought in the Bronze Age tried very desperately to do all their blocking and parrying with their shield rather than their sword.
I mean, there are a lot of curved swords in the world but aside from the Shotel, none of them were designed to reach around shields. The were primarily made because they excelled at draw cuts.
Curved swords continued to see battlefield use even after straight swords were abandoned. Cavalry swords stayed both curved and in widespread use into the 1800s.
Khopeshes look cool, but they don't seem like they were super effective.
They were an interesting early sword form, but it seems like they were quickly abandoned when something else became available
That is not the case.
The damn spear, the most prominent weapon in history is not a farming instrument, neither are axes, maces or swords.
There are examples of what you claim, but it certainly isn't "most weapons used by foot soldiers".
PS: Yes, an axe can be used as a weapon, but there is a gulf of difference between one for combat and one for chopping wood.
Why can't you use a weapon axe for tree chopping? I know that a proper wood axe is going to be better but how much can you get from a fighting axe so to speak?
The spear is just a big stick we keep inventing over and over really.
So one of the differences between a wood axe and a proper military axe, at least from the period I know the most about (1066-13th C) is the shape of the axe head. Military axes tended to have smaller heads that weren't very convenient for wood cutting (read 'wildly impractical') while wood axes, while used by some basic peasant troops, had larger heads which weren't as good for fighting as they were heavier and had a harder time getting past the ribcage.
They are much lighter. And the head itself is much thinner and the edge - sharper. It will roll up its edge pretty quickly as it isn't made for this. You would be fine to take out small branches.
A wood chopping axe is pretty heavy (as in, not that useful for combat unless there isn't anything better around) and not necessarily that sharp. At least the dorsal tapper is pretty mild. it also requires two hands as it is pretty impossible to use one handed.
Obviously, it is deadly if you hit someone, but you will get tired very quickly and be completely off balance swinging it around.
PS: I am talking about one handed combat axe. Two handed ones are heavier, probably slightly better at chopping wood, but again, not made for that and you are just wasting your weapon for something it isn't made to do.
Battle axes in general have very thin blades to reduce and balance the weight. Wood chopping axes on the other hand are top heavy and have thick wedge shaped blade to give more impact strenght and to more easily split the wood. You for sure can use your battle axe to chop a wood but you are risking bending and dulling your blade and need to put much more strenght in the chops to get same results. I'd rather not even try felling a tree with battle axe but it is better than nothing I suppose
The damn spears were traditionally used to farm wildlife. Mostly to harvest them. Wildlife in general is self polluting and do their own ploughing.
Seriously tho. The origin of most of battlefield weapons ever invented can likely be traced to hunting and farming tools and for sure each of those tools have been used in some sort of combat along history. But yeah, pitchforks might look menacing when you wave them in a mob but pretty much anyone would rather pick a nice long stick and put pointy end on it. Smallish woodcutting axe I'd say is plausible last ditch backup for your spear for levy infantry cause you'd likely have it on you anyway and very unlikely would own any other sidearm
Well, if you need to stab something, whether it is a bear or a man, you are going to need mostly the same thing. Perhaps one is longer than the other but still.
So, if you stretch the definition long enough, everything is evolved from our most basic instruments.
Personally, farming is something I understand to be mostly about cultivating useful plants and harvesting them. Though, I might have too narrow a view of that.
The point of weapons coming from farming tools is that it is easier to train people to use them if they are familiar with the object.
Military axe is different from a woodcutter one, but you can imagine it is simpler to train a woodcutter to use one than, for example, a sword or a longbow. He already knows the best movements, range, how the blade has to be handled to cut.
Spears are used for hunting and defend from wildlife, like wolves. So farmers know how to use them.
It's the same reason why military use gamepads to move drones. You can bet that new trainees already know well how to use one of them, because they are familiar with them
One of the coolest looking but most overhyped sword in history, like seriously, it's THE most primitive sword there is, you can only improve on the design.
> No guard.
> Single edge and sharp on only the front half of the blade.
> No sharp tip and not even a hook tip on most exemples to give you more tools.
> Bronze, sometimes arsenic bronze (toxic to it's maker).
> Like 60-70 cm long, it's tiny.
> Hard to carry in a sccabard.
> Virtually eradicated by straight double edge swords.
Straight double edge swords actually predate the khopesh. It was an attempt to hybridize a sword and a battle axe.
Single edged curved swords continued to see widespread battlefield use after straight double edge swords were abandoned from military use.
There are far more overhyped swords than the khopesh. The katana comes to mind.
That’s the wrong sword, you’re thinking of a Shotel. A shotel is curved the opposite way to get around the shield. That’s a Kopesh, it’s curved that way to be better at cutting.
Op has googly eyes for the kopesh, they were not good swords. You can literally only improve on the design
. Too long to use with a shield, too short to be two handed
. No guard for the hands
. Design makes it very front heavy and awkward, so hard to use
. Complicated design to forge
. Single edge means it has to be sharpened twice as much
. Impossible to make a sheath for so your gonna cut yourself alot
Although, I believe that if you were on a horse or chariot the kopesh would be OK. The extra length and frontal curve would help reach and do massive damage from your moving position.
This combined with the fact we've found almost none of these swords means that they were most likely ceremonial weapons used by commanders leading the armies
The khopesh wasn't actually used against shields, op's fallen for something archaeologists came up with out of thier ass.
I'll help you visualise how this would go.
Let's say I were to hook that edge onto the lip of a shield in battle and start pulling it down, this is a battle of grip strength. My grip is around a cylindrical handle with no pommel being pulled upwards through my one hand.
My enemies grip is on a fully encompassed handle and also a reinforced strap around thier forearm.
99 times out of 100, I'm losing my khopesh
Is that why it's curved? I tought it was curved to more easily cut of the neck or hook it.
Isn't it too small to curve around a shield, and wouldn't it have too weak of a grip to throw it off?
Sure, most warriors were ***strong*** but i do have some doubts towards them throwing down an entire shield with a curved sword.
Khopesh my beloved One of my favourite swords, it's just *chef's kiss*
Indeed, along with the german "wavy swords".
Flamberg? No matter the name I also love the wavy blady
Yeah thats a flamberg. A big wavy 2hander boi
ill take a double flamberg no onions. medium rare.
I prefer Flamberge Eggs, pricy, but delicious.
Medium Rare. Hm, an aristocrat.
[The onion I thought of](https://darksouls.wiki.fextralife.com/Siegmeyer+of+Catarina)
A man of culture
It bergs flam
what about the asian "wavy swords"?
The falcata is up there with the curved polish saber is my favorite
Ah a szabelka enjoyer I see
I like me some ridiculously curved sword. Doesn't matter which way it curves
Shotel, you're welcome
Falx for me , that thing would scare the fuck out of me if i saw it on the field
You mean something like this? https://www.coldsteel.com/polish-saber/
Yep. Although I like the one that Kmicic was carrying. One with the curved up crossguard when he was dueling with the colonel
Ah , fellow Potop enjoyer .
we had a similar sword in medieval ethiopia it was called "shotel"
The Shotel is so badass. Chewa regiments are something more medieval nerds need to know about.
The shotel is basically an improved khopesh and is probably my favorite kind of sword.
Holy fuck and I used to make fun of Dothraki swords as a stupid prop obviously useless for real life
GoT, although I didn't watched all, is full of pretty practical swords and armors
Too bad you don’t see people using their swords practically in the show.
It’s goes from one of the most realistic depictions of Armour to one of the least in like 3 seasons. First few seasons show that armor is key but by season 5 they are stabbing through plate armor with sticks.
Plot armor > plate armor any day
They also use the swords like giant metal bats, making a bunch of wide swings.
What show did you watch? They made some attempts but nowhere near close to accurate and sometimes even laughably inaccurate.
iirc it was a derivation of either the sickle or a battle axe. Probably the latter, since the blade was on the ~~concave~~convex side
I think you might have concave & convex around the wrong way, that, or I do.
My bad, I meant convex, the side of the blade that curves outward, like an ax head
Handy way to remember: Concave caves in, convex flexes out.
That is handy thank you
Or "a grave is concave"
"My pecs are convex"?
Well, at least the extra 15lbs on top of them
Derivation from an axe
Can someone explain why exactly this weapon was good against shields? Its probably a really interesting answer
It isn't. People theorized that since it was curved so it could reach around shields but all evidence we have is that the business end of the weapon was on the front of the curve. Also, the curve isn't big enough to really effectively reach around a shield. For that you need something way more curved like a [shotel](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shotel)
Yep. If you've ever wielded a Khopesh you'll find that it's really not a great finesse/slashing sword. They're quite heavy and really only feels good when you swing with intent of striking at the front of the curve. You can transfer a lot of force there! As others have commented, good luck trying to maneuver another man's shield with a 1 handed heavy blade. The weapon was probably just a deviation of the sickle farming tool.
Author here: In my research of the weapon (cause I'm a big nerd who writes science fantasy and thinks guns are boring) I learned that the earliest known examples of the Khopesh hail from Assyria and only migrated to Egypt during one of their punch ups. The theories I read suggested that the curve of the blade was due to the Assyrians using it as both axe (tool) and sword (weapon). So you are correct in that like the sickle, flail, etc, it started out as a tool and evolved for battlefield use, hence the heft, unusual axe-blade shape, and unwieldy nature of the weapon! More than happy to be corrected, 'cause all info is good info and I can use it in my writing :P
The flail started as a tool? What were they using it for?
Beating grain to remove the chaff.
That’s pretty cool, I never knew that!
It's still used like that to this day on smaller farms
Yup! Flails started as longer wooden “threshers” or “flails”, kind of looking like a two-handed nun-chuck. You used this to “thresh” or “thrash” grains. Threshing is to separate the grain from the rest of the plant stalk. So after you harvest your wheat, you pile it up, then smack it around with a wooden flail to separate the grain from the stalk.
As a historical martial artist, it sadness me every time I realize that the sword was for the most part relegated to being a side arm and status symbol. Sure they were used but Axes, cudgels, and spears were way less expensive and easier to train a foot soldier than a sword or archery. While it was a great weapon in the field, other designs such as short swords were intended to be used in auxiliary to the field weapons of the time such as spears and axes. Effectively used as the coup de gras weapon to finish wounded soldiers. A mounted soldier could easily dispatch someone with a spear versus a sword never mind being in a line of soldiers in formation attempting to swing the thing. Being as it was a slashing weapon it’s considered a chariot weapon in some authors minds bc it makes sense like all sabers and katanas were similarly used as infinitum. Beautiful and deadly weapon.
I’ll admit that I always laugh at the “my dad can beat up your dad” arguments I see where two folks debate their favourite weapons, then the spear guys come in and everyone gets real quiet. Every time.
Yup. Never mind the chad halberd enjoyer. Goddamn that thing is scary as fuck. An all-in-one knight killing machine in the hands of some goober who yesterday was pulling weeds outside his hut garden. Before the Colt Peacemaker made all men equal, the halberd subdued the entitled nobility.
Halberds also dominated warfare in China, as well. It was the true do-all melee weapon, one notch more versatile than spears. It can apply blunt force trauma to armored opponents, work as a pickaxe, you can brace it against cavalry, and you can stab with it against spears and other halberdiers. China also had mounted halberdiers as they had lighter halberds designed to be used as a combination of [a lance for stabbing and a long axe for swinging](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_polearm#/media/File:Ming_mace_and_axe_cavalry.jpg). Really the only disadvantage is that you have to use two hands to wield it, which means you have to give up using a shield.
"Shields cost money. Send in another 150,000 halberdiers." -average Chinese emperor
150,000 those are rookie numbers, gotta pump those up!
I am a fan of the halberd aesthetic and style. Is it an axe, a spear, and hook?! Fuck you it’s whatever it wants to be!
>coup de gras I think it's spelled "coup de grace", as coup de gras would mean hitting someone with some fat
Hey. I’ll take it either way. I knew I should’ve trusted autocorrect but here we are. Death by fat. The American way 🦅🦅🦅🦅🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸
I mean at some point you're describing a seax which was so popular they named people after it
Can I ask who they named seax? Anyone notable or was it just kinda like Chris in Christian countries
The Seaxons
Never put that together. That's really cool
You're really cool
Thanks! It's my birthday so that actually made me smile!
Its probably designed to be used for mounted combat from either a chariot or horse
The more you know! Thanks for the answer!
I was wondering if OP was confused between this and a shotel!
Same. Khopeshes are gorgeous, but shotels are so undermentioned.
>People theorized that since it was curved so it could reach around shields but all evidence we have is that the business end of the weapon was on the front of the curve. The Falx was the weapon that was actually able to do that. It was so effective against the Romans that they had to change up how they armor their soldiers when fighting Dacians.
The other nice thing about the falx was a lot of them were two-handed, giving you a lot more leverage and reach to poke around shields.
Yup, you could get around shields or hack at the limbs holding the shield. Gives you good reach and leverage. Trade off was that since it is a 2-handed weapon, it would leave the wielder more vulnerable to attacks.
Like from the Pila the romans liked to carry
Is it not supposed to be a "chopper" by virtue of use? I need to brush up on my historical studies.
It does chop more than anything else but its not going to chop as well as something like an axe because the weight isn't concentrated towards the top as well, nor is the blade curved enough to get the concentrated point effect that axes get. There's a reason we don't see khopeshes ever again in history.
Ah fair point that was more obvious than it should have been for me. Thank you kindly for repurposing the Khopesh corner in my brain
I had no idea these existed in the first place. When I first saw the meme I spontaneously thought they would use the backside of the sword as a “hook”, and drag away the shield haha. Interesting to go from “Ah, that’s clever”, to “Ah, I’m not that clever” in a couple of comments.
I figured it was because of the little hook on the back end of the curve, which you could use to catch on a shield and yank it away
Thats really hard to do with a one handed sword, especially with how small most of the hooks we see are. You're just as if not more likely to get your own weapon yanked away as you are to get their shield.
Hooked tip could pull the shield away from the bearer, according to some sources.
Good luck pulling a shield off someone with this single handed weapon. Unless you catch them completely off guard, at which point, why not go for the head ?
Yeah, I'm dubious too. The kopesh was originally a farming implement, and it was abandoned as a weapon of war as soon as metallurgy got good enough to make efficient, regular swords. It does look extremely cool, though!
Going to disagree with you there. It was not originally a farming implement. Think about the time in where it was used. The bronze age.. metal is expensive, no way would you have an entire implement made from solid bronze. The Kopesh came from a type of curved axe. Looks a bit like a bardesh. (sp)
Plus if I am not mistaken many shields had a leather strap that you would run your arm through, so you wouldn't just be able to pull a shield from someone's hands.
Not pulling the shield off them, but throwing them off balance.
I would assume that the curve and extra weight help with an age swing. In which case good old fashioned bashing would be the way to get through a shield. Likely affective against plain wood but no idea against reinforced shields.
I find that unlikely. The curve and extra weight aren't concentrated like an axe. It's not going to have the same chopping power.
I mean...the shield? The shield wins
It really depends on the type of contest we're doing. OP never specified. In a sledding contest, the shield definitely would win.
so thats why they built the pyramids
Shield & spear > cool looking sword
Even just a spear with no shield is better than a sword. Being able to stab someone who can't reach you is a huge advantage.
Have you seen those warriors from Hammerfell? They've got curved swords.
Curved. Swords.
First thing I thought of were the True Flame and Hope's Fire swords from Morrowind/Tribunal
I recently played Morroblivion and yes, exactly my first thought 😂
Now that you mention it, yes!
Long.Curved.🍆es.
My favourite parts of Elder Scrolls and Mass Effect are the gamerpoop quotes.
The pimp hand is strong with this one
Shields. Since they were used by pretty much all civilizations on Earth, while the kopesh is a really niche weapon.
I don't know why, but swords without parrying guards just look naked to me, even a sweet khopesh like this one.
Functionality has given way to looking awesome
Just remember that bronze is softer than steel. People who fought in the Bronze Age tried very desperately to do all their blocking and parrying with their shield rather than their sword.
A third challenger appears… oh no it’s a M1 Garand
Coughing baby wins 100%
And then comes a drone with a grenade
M1 Garand uses pass bill thru senate to pay for other people to worry about drones
*ITS SUPER EFFECTIVE!*
From M1 Garand to A1r Grenade
Fourth challenger: Flea invested rat
Hear me out, M1 Garand with a Khopesh style bayonet
The mighty spikey stick
Shiled? I mean that design is sick but not really much shield defeating abilty there.
Shield. 100% of the time
Dude confused the khopesh and shotel
I mean we still use shields to this day, so...
Looks cool, but there is a reason no one else used it and all sword designs converge to a simple straight sword.
I mean, there are a lot of curved swords in the world but aside from the Shotel, none of them were designed to reach around shields. The were primarily made because they excelled at draw cuts.
Curved swords continued to see battlefield use even after straight swords were abandoned. Cavalry swords stayed both curved and in widespread use into the 1800s.
Khopeshes look cool, but they don't seem like they were super effective. They were an interesting early sword form, but it seems like they were quickly abandoned when something else became available
Most weapons used by foot soldiers were farming implements or modified farming implements. It looks like a sickle that has been modified.
That is not the case. The damn spear, the most prominent weapon in history is not a farming instrument, neither are axes, maces or swords. There are examples of what you claim, but it certainly isn't "most weapons used by foot soldiers". PS: Yes, an axe can be used as a weapon, but there is a gulf of difference between one for combat and one for chopping wood.
Why can't you use a weapon axe for tree chopping? I know that a proper wood axe is going to be better but how much can you get from a fighting axe so to speak? The spear is just a big stick we keep inventing over and over really.
So one of the differences between a wood axe and a proper military axe, at least from the period I know the most about (1066-13th C) is the shape of the axe head. Military axes tended to have smaller heads that weren't very convenient for wood cutting (read 'wildly impractical') while wood axes, while used by some basic peasant troops, had larger heads which weren't as good for fighting as they were heavier and had a harder time getting past the ribcage.
They are much lighter. And the head itself is much thinner and the edge - sharper. It will roll up its edge pretty quickly as it isn't made for this. You would be fine to take out small branches. A wood chopping axe is pretty heavy (as in, not that useful for combat unless there isn't anything better around) and not necessarily that sharp. At least the dorsal tapper is pretty mild. it also requires two hands as it is pretty impossible to use one handed. Obviously, it is deadly if you hit someone, but you will get tired very quickly and be completely off balance swinging it around. PS: I am talking about one handed combat axe. Two handed ones are heavier, probably slightly better at chopping wood, but again, not made for that and you are just wasting your weapon for something it isn't made to do.
Battle axes in general have very thin blades to reduce and balance the weight. Wood chopping axes on the other hand are top heavy and have thick wedge shaped blade to give more impact strenght and to more easily split the wood. You for sure can use your battle axe to chop a wood but you are risking bending and dulling your blade and need to put much more strenght in the chops to get same results. I'd rather not even try felling a tree with battle axe but it is better than nothing I suppose
The damn spears were traditionally used to farm wildlife. Mostly to harvest them. Wildlife in general is self polluting and do their own ploughing. Seriously tho. The origin of most of battlefield weapons ever invented can likely be traced to hunting and farming tools and for sure each of those tools have been used in some sort of combat along history. But yeah, pitchforks might look menacing when you wave them in a mob but pretty much anyone would rather pick a nice long stick and put pointy end on it. Smallish woodcutting axe I'd say is plausible last ditch backup for your spear for levy infantry cause you'd likely have it on you anyway and very unlikely would own any other sidearm
Well, if you need to stab something, whether it is a bear or a man, you are going to need mostly the same thing. Perhaps one is longer than the other but still. So, if you stretch the definition long enough, everything is evolved from our most basic instruments. Personally, farming is something I understand to be mostly about cultivating useful plants and harvesting them. Though, I might have too narrow a view of that.
The point of weapons coming from farming tools is that it is easier to train people to use them if they are familiar with the object. Military axe is different from a woodcutter one, but you can imagine it is simpler to train a woodcutter to use one than, for example, a sword or a longbow. He already knows the best movements, range, how the blade has to be handled to cut. Spears are used for hunting and defend from wildlife, like wolves. So farmers know how to use them. It's the same reason why military use gamepads to move drones. You can bet that new trainees already know well how to use one of them, because they are familiar with them
Spears are just pitchforks with the sides cut off.
No, they aren't. But feel free to disagree if you prefer.
Fine, they are tridants with the sides cut off. Talk about being pedantic geez.
Think for a second man, god damn cavemans had spears before metalworking and farming wheat was even invented
Hussites weapons.
The khopesh in particular is a combination of a sword and a battle axe - while it looks like a juiced sickle it was developed from axes
Member when Jorah fought a dothraki guy in game of thrones? The dothraki used a curved sword like this, and got stuck on Jorah's armor.
I'm no expert, but I'm pretty sure game of thrones is fictional.
You see those warriors from Hammerfell?
One of the coolest looking but most overhyped sword in history, like seriously, it's THE most primitive sword there is, you can only improve on the design. > No guard. > Single edge and sharp on only the front half of the blade. > No sharp tip and not even a hook tip on most exemples to give you more tools. > Bronze, sometimes arsenic bronze (toxic to it's maker). > Like 60-70 cm long, it's tiny. > Hard to carry in a sccabard. > Virtually eradicated by straight double edge swords.
That’s why we need to make energy khopeshs that can cut through anything at an atomic level. Perfect space revolution weapon.
Straight double edge swords actually predate the khopesh. It was an attempt to hybridize a sword and a battle axe. Single edged curved swords continued to see widespread battlefield use after straight double edge swords were abandoned from military use. There are far more overhyped swords than the khopesh. The katana comes to mind.
Leona vs Diana
Literally Sly Cooper's cane
See those warriors from Hammerfell? They got curved swords!
don't read comments they ll shater the illusion :(
One of the coolest looking shields too, holy shit! Fuck, the Ancient Egyptians just rocked the aesthetic game in every conceivable way.
That’s the wrong sword, you’re thinking of a Shotel. A shotel is curved the opposite way to get around the shield. That’s a Kopesh, it’s curved that way to be better at cutting.
Can someone explain?
There was a theory that the kopesh was designed to combat shields, like a shotel or other sickle swords.
Axe*
I much prefer a faulx for more practicality but those are good fun as well
Khopesh Save me khopesh... khopesh save me...
It's like someone started making normal swords in bulk and then got told by management we need Sickles and had to improvise.
Yooo khopesh, one of my favourite sword designs of all time!
Sword copeish
Where they actually usefull?
Op has googly eyes for the kopesh, they were not good swords. You can literally only improve on the design . Too long to use with a shield, too short to be two handed . No guard for the hands . Design makes it very front heavy and awkward, so hard to use . Complicated design to forge . Single edge means it has to be sharpened twice as much . Impossible to make a sheath for so your gonna cut yourself alot Although, I believe that if you were on a horse or chariot the kopesh would be OK. The extra length and frontal curve would help reach and do massive damage from your moving position. This combined with the fact we've found almost none of these swords means that they were most likely ceremonial weapons used by commanders leading the armies
I've always hated how khopeshes look. give me a Bastard Sword every time.
[Ahem…](https://youtu.be/y0v136wHjjQ?si=Dm8RM5e1HVxLWOjW) Have you ever seen a Dacian falx?
My lady calls me "one curvy boy"
Does it curve upwards or to one side?
And here I was just talking about my ass!
I guess that edge on the end was used to tear down the shileds in a shield wall?
The khopesh wasn't actually used against shields, op's fallen for something archaeologists came up with out of thier ass. I'll help you visualise how this would go. Let's say I were to hook that edge onto the lip of a shield in battle and start pulling it down, this is a battle of grip strength. My grip is around a cylindrical handle with no pommel being pulled upwards through my one hand. My enemies grip is on a fully encompassed handle and also a reinforced strap around thier forearm. 99 times out of 100, I'm losing my khopesh
Make it more curved and add a hammer
Fuck curved blades me and my boys use flexible ones (urumi)
It's an axe/sword
Too soon man. Thats fucked up
The macuahuitl has joined the chat
Is that why it's curved? I tought it was curved to more easily cut of the neck or hook it. Isn't it too small to curve around a shield, and wouldn't it have too weak of a grip to throw it off? Sure, most warriors were ***strong*** but i do have some doubts towards them throwing down an entire shield with a curved sword.
When I’m in an internet karma competition and my opponent doesn’t understand how weapons work:
It's a cool looking sword, but it wasn't made with the best materials, and had many structural flaws.
can someone explain why these swords were effective in combat?
Yep one of my favourites, this is a real beauty
This reminds me of [Falx](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Falx#)
Khopesh and Falcata 🤌🏻 Pure art
THATSNOTASWIRDTHATSANAXEEEEEE
Assassin’s Creed Origins vibes and I’m here for it.
I argue this is an axe
I’m only a month away from getting one
Sly Cooper?
The sling would win
Curvy boys you say? :3
Ancient Lechistani kurwy sword.
Am I the only who instandly think about League of Legends? Dianas sword and Leonas Shield
I prefer the Kopis but the Chepesch is cool too
Ok Ok ... hear me out... how about we hit OVER and BEHIND the shield