Description
This is a very fine knights rondel ( dagger ) of the earliest and rarest form dating from the 14th/15th century. Unlike the later rondels ( which means disc hilt ) this is a four bladed weapon and one of the very rarest examples. The blade of 11.25 inches of diamond or cruciform section tapering to a spear point. The overall length of 15.5 inches. The typical disc hilt is made up of just two tooled iron discs, the lower hilt disc shows the owners initials inlayed in silver. The grip of wood which would originally have been cord bound and leather covered. This type of dagger was no good for cutting or other general use, it was purely made as a side arm for the battlefield and a very useful thrusting weapon during hand to hand combat. The pointed tip of the blade could easily penetrate chain mail and was a very useful tool to force between plates of armour and helmets. The dagger has been well conserved, the blade shows some losses and cracks but just surface and is still very strong. A fine and rare collectors piece.
