Iron Age weapons in western Europe: from the biography of a weapon to the warrior’s interactions during the last centuries BC

MATERIAL CHAINS IN LATE PREHISTORIC EUROPE AND THE MEDITERRANEAN - ausonius éditions — Mémoires 48 — MATERIAL CHAINS IN LATE PREHISTORIC EUROPE AND THE MEDITERRANEAN Time, Space and Technologies of Production Edited by Alexis Gorgues, Katharina Rebay-Salisbury, Roderick B. Salisbury Published with the support of the Région Nouvelle Aquitaine — Bordeaux 2017 — Notice catalographique Gorgues, A., Rebay-Salisbury, K. and Salisbury, B. R., eds (2017): Material Chains in Late Prehistoric Europe and the Mediterranean: Time, Space and Technologies of Production, Ausonius Mémoires 48, Bordeaux. Keywords : Archeology, Protohistory, craftsmanship, techniques, Bronze Age, Iron Age, Mediterranean, Europe AUSONIUS Maison de l’Archéologie Université de Bordeaux - Montaigne F - 33607 Pessac Cedex http://ausoniuseditions.u-bordeaux-montaigne.fr Directeur des Publications : Olivier Devillers Secrétaire des Publications : Nathalie Pexoto Couverture : Stéphanie Vincent Pérez © AUSONIUS 2017 ISSN : 1283-2995 ISBN : 978-2-35613-194-2 Achevé d’impimer sur les presses de l’imprimerie Gráficas calima, S.A. Avda Candina, s/n E - 39011 Santander - Cantabia- Espagne 15 septembre 2017 Table of Contents Authors................................................................................................................................................................................................................ 7 Alexis Gorgues, Katharina Rebay-Salisbury, Roderick B. Salisbury, Material chains in late prehistoric Europe and the Mediterranean: time, space, and technologies of production. An Introduction.................................................................... 9 Roderick B. Salisbury, Katharina Rebay-Salisbury, Processes of theory: from production sequences and process to chaînes opératoires and object biographies........................................................................................................ 15 Estelle Gauthier, Pierre Pétrequin and Maréva Gabillot in collaboration with Olivier Weller, Jessica Giraud and Robin Brigand, A method of data structuring for the study of diffusion processes of raw materials and manufactured objects.................................................................................................................................. 31 Roderick B. Salisbury, Links in the chain: evidence for crafting and activity areas in late prehistoric cultural soilscapes.............................................................................................................................................. 47 Alexis Gorgues, with collaboration of Florent Comte, Wherever I lay my tools. Workspace morphology and temporality in the Northern Iberian world (sixth-first centuries BC).............................................................................................................. 67 Ann Brysbaert, Where are they? Buried, wasted, half-done and left-over: in search of creative artisans among their ‘rubbish’ in Late Bronze Age Tiryns, Greece............................................................................................................ 97 Ziad El Morr, Metal and society in Middle Bronze Age Byblos............................................................................................................... 121 Tomaso Di Fraia, Tablet weaving in prehistory and proto-history: the contribution of the Italian record.................................... 139 Nicolas Frèrebeau, Charlotte Sacilotto, On some Iberian unfired pottery sherds from the Late Iron Age (second century BC)................................................................................................................. 157 Juan Jesús Padilla Fernández, Romanization is coming! The appearance of the potter working class in Iberia at the end of the Second Iron Age..................................................................................................................................... 171 Alexandre Bertaud, Iron Age weapons in western Europe: from the biography of a weapon to the warrior’s interactions during the last centuries BC............................................... 183 Index.................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 195 Iron Age weapons in western Europe: from the biography of a weapon to the warrior’s interactions during the last centuries BC Alexandre Bertaud T o understand the functions of weaponry in late prehistoric societies of the last centuries before our era, we must consider weapons through their biographies as well as through their discovery contexts, two aspects of research that are inextricably linked. This paper will present an analytic method based on both the biographies of artefacts (as proposed first by I. Kopytoff 1 in 1986 and, for archaeological artefacts specifically, by M. Shanks 2 in 1998), and the contextual analysis, in order to understand the cultural exchanges related to warfare artefacts. For this purpose, we will study a large area of western continental Europe (France, Spain and to a lesser extent Portugal) to clarify multiple and reciprocal interactions. Which weapons? To study the warfare interactions in Western Europe at the end of the first millennium BC, this paper focuses on one offensive weapon: the sword. Various sword types have been found in this study area. In France, mainly La Tène type swords have been discovered (fig. 1, left), whereas in the Iberian Peninsula, the “frontón” sword 3 (fig. 1, right), which is shorter than the La Tène type, and the falcata sword 4 (fig. 1, centre) are among the most significant types. The “frontón” sword is mainly discovered in the Meseta area in Spain for the 3rd to 1st centuries BC but some examples have been yielded elsewhere in the Iberian Peninsula. The falcata is a sword with a curved blade and a hilt that was often decorated and covered the hand. These are the main types of swords that can be found in the western continental European area. They can of course be divided in groups that are more specific. However, this paper will let aside specifically typological issues to focus on technical and social practices. The biography of a sword Whereas several swords were discovered in France and the Iberian Peninsula, very few of them were submitted to archaeometrical studies, which are often destructive. This choice is associated more to the preservation of heritage and contemporaneous museography than to the difficulties in obtaining sufficient data from these weapons, and this void is noted in the Iberian Peninsula even more than in France. North of the Pyrenees, A. France-Lanord studied the La Tène type swords in the sixties 5. These studies have shown the specificities of the production of La Tène type swords and the particularities of Gallic blacksmithing. L. Uran conducted a similar analysis on swords found in the emblematic archaeological settlement of Gournay-sur-Aronde (Oise) 6, excavated by J.-L. Brunaux 7. However, it is possible to pick up the biographies of these weapons by adapting our analysis, not focusing on a single sword having undergone some archaeometrical research, but studying several examples that allow us to retrace the different steps of the life of each type of sword. This life begins with production, is followed by use and eventually the artefact is discarded, i.e. the end of life. We will try to pick up these phases in a chronological way, so 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. Kopytoff 1986. Shanks 1998. Quesada 1997, 174-187. Quesada 1997, 61-171. France-Lanord 1964. Uran 1986; Fluzin et al. 1983. Brunaux et al. 1985. – Material chains in late prehistoric Europe and the Mediterranean, p. 183-194 Alexandre Bertaud Éléments sous droit d’auteur - © Ausonius Éditions septembre 2017 184 – | Fig. 1. Various swords type on scale, with vocabulary. Iron Age weapons in western Europe – 185 as to understand, through the biographies, if we can outline influences and interactions among western European “weapons users” during the last centuries BC. Beginning and production As we have explained before, data about the production of weapons are very scarce, particularly in the Iberian Peninsula. This paper considers the few archaeometrical studies conducted, and is based on the study of various swords that come from different areas, i.e. the north of France, the south of Spain and the central Spain Meseta. Éléments sous droit d’auteur - © Ausonius Éditions septemebre 2017 The Southern Iberian area: the falcata Falcata is the most typical weapon of the Southern Iberian area. From a morphological point of view, the whole sword is forged in one iron piece. The falcata can be divided into a curved blade and a hilt that can be ornate, with perishable material or other metal like bronze or silver. The falcata found in La Almedinilla (Andalusia, Spain) is the best-known example from an archaeometrical point of view because of the analysis conducted by G. Nieto and A. Escalera in 1970 8. These studies showed that the inside part of the blade is much carburized, like a steel part, whereas the exterior parts are less carburized, in a quite soft iron. In Gaul: the La Tène Sword The La Tène type swords found in France are forged in only one piece from the blade to the tang. The hilt, unfortunately rarely found, most likely would have been made of perishable materials. We can only find the guard and nails that fastened the perishable material grip. The guard is always forged in one piece, and sometimes discovered in a primary position: on the shoulder at the beginning of the blade. Analyses of La Tène type swords found in France provided information about the production. The blade centre, in section, is made with a steeled iron, containing significant carbon part, whereas the external parts are less carburized 9. These analyses were made on objects found during excavation, and they had been used before deposition. The decarburised phase visible on the external part of the blades could obviously be a by-product of manufacture, i.e. a deliberate choice of the blacksmith to produce a soft iron on the external part and a more resistant inside. However, we can also consider the extent to which the use of these weapons caused this decarburisation. A sword regularly sharpened by hammering could lose a great part of carbon on the external parts. Indeed, it is probably easier for a blacksmith to sharpen a blade by hammering, on a decarburised iron, i.e. an iron that does not nick under impacts but that deforms slightly, and the soft iron external parts could have been intended to make sharpening easier. In the Meseta: the “frontón” Sword In the Meseta, archeometrical studies were mainly conducted on daggers and their decorative elements. Unfortunately, the “frontón” sword is lesser known, from a metallographic point of view, than the other swords discussed here. In summary, we can observe similarities in the formatting and composition between La Tène type swords and falcatas. Indeed, the result would be the same whether we follow the usage decarburisation hypothesis or that of a deliberate choice made by the blacksmith. The use of a death tool We can only make a few observations about the swords’ use because of iron oxidation (rust), which deforms the original shape and removes traces of use like nicks or impacts that can be seen on copper alloy objects10. According to the 8. 9. 10. Nieto & Escalera 1970. France-Lanord 1964. See Molloy et al. 2016. 186 – Alexandre Bertaud few traces of use on sword blades, we will try to make other observations to understand the way that these weapons were used and the interactions that can be drawn between different areas. Use in combat By studying three different sword types (“frontón”, falcata and La Tène type), we can gain better understanding of the way they were used. Éléments sous droit d’auteur - © Ausonius Éditions septembre 2017 With a short and wide blade and a massive metallic hilt that balances the weapon on a centre of gravity close to the guard, the “frontón” sword seems to be used for thrusting at short-range. Cutting strokes are possible, but only with a particular intent from the warrior, because this weapon is not visibly made for cutting 11 (fig. 2, right). The curved foremost end and the particular form of the blade of the falcata, where the widest part is on the distal part of the blade, show the importance of inertia and indicate that this weapon was mainly used as a cutting sword. The cutting edge is on the inside part and at the foremost extremity of the back blade. This particularity allows its use as a thrusting weapon while the maximum efficiency lies in the cutting blows 12 (fig. 2, centre). | Fig. 2. Center of gravity of swords (red points) calculated with 3D reconstruction. We made these calculations through the numerical production of replicas that allow us to know the volume and the weight of each part of the object. Left: La Tène sword (after the sword from grave 3 at Ville-sur-Retourne, Champagne-Ardennes-Alsace-Lorraine, France (Stead et al. 2006, 259-264)); middle: falcata (after the falcata from the casa LE-C in Castrejón de Capote, Extremadura, Spain (Berrocal-Rangel 1994, 270)); right: “frontón” sword (after the sword from grave 2 in Sepúlveda, Castilla y León, Spain (Blanco 1998, 166)). (Illustrations by Florent Comte). 11. 12. 13. 14. Lorrio 2005, 189. Quesada 1997, 596. Déchelette 1927, 612. Rapin 1999, 62. The La Tène type sword presents a great blade, about 50 to 70 cm long, with a perishable material hilt. In his Manuel d’Archéologie Préhistorique celtique et GalloRomaine 13, J. Déchelette studied many late prehistoric artefacts related to warfare. However, he studied the form of these swords in their iron scabbards, most of which have a round-shape extremity at the end of the Iron Age. He inferred therefore from his observations that during the last centuries BC, the blade end turns from a pointed end to a rounded end. By studying a large number of La Tène type swords out of their scabbards, we can now ascertain that these swords had a pointed end that was more or less sharpened 14. The long straight blade, with a light hilt made of perishable material, makes this sword balance between the first and the middle of the blade. We can conclude that this La Tène type sword Iron Age weapons in western Europe – 187 was mostly used as a cutting weapon, although it can be used as a thrusting sword because of its (more or less) pointed end 15 (fig. 2, left). Despite the strong morphological differences between falcatas and La Tène type swords, these weapons seem to be used in a similar way, i.e. mainly to cut, despite the fact that they can be thrust. Wearing and carrying Éléments sous droit d’auteur - © Ausonius Éditions septemebre 2017 La Tène type swords are common in Catalonia in north-eastern Spain. These local-made swords are very similar to the Gallic ones, but some differences remain. Their size is shorter in Catalonia than in France16, demonstrating a particular requirement for these warriors. However, their suspension system is more or less close to the Gallic one. The situation may differ when the weapon is imported from abroad. Grave D at Quintanas de Gormaz (Castilla y León, Spain) gives interesting elements from this point of view (fig. 3) 17. In this grave, a La Tène type sword was discovered with an iron scabbard displaying the typical La Tène suspension system, i.e. a suspension loop that held two metal chains linked to a belt to carry the sword on the warrior’s hip. The La Tène type sword found in this grave has these suspension loops, but also some rings added on one side of the scabbard. These rings indicate a different way of carrying the sword; not with a chain and belt system on the hip, but with a baldric, like a sling over the shoulder, which we frequently observe in Iberian Peninsula iconography (ceramics and sculpture) or with the metallic Monte-Bernorio baldric found in the north-western and central parts of Spain. Furthermore, this scabbard is decorated with dragons on its upper part. The dragons are frequent on scabbards in the continental area from Hungary to France but very rare in the Iberian Peninsula. This grave contained a sword made in the La Tène area, later imported to the centre of the Iberian Peninsula, where it was modified to fit local suspension system, based on the use of baldric rather than a belt 18. | 15. 16. 17. 18. Fig. 3. Sword from grave D in Quintanas de Gormaz necropolis (Lernez 1991, pl. 203). Rapin 1999, 58 and 62. García 2006, 200-208. Schule 1969, Quesada 1997, 253, García 2012, 114 and 460. Quesada 1997, 252. 188 – Alexandre Bertaud Similarly, an element discovered in grave 163 of Ensérune (Occitanie, France) allows us to apprehend these interactions and adaptations 19. In this grave (fig. 4, bottom), La Tène weapons were found: namely a sword in its scabbard with associated metallic chains. This suspension system of scale-chains (“chaîne à échelle”) is well known from La Tène contexts 20. Usually made of iron, the Ensérune chains are surprinsingly in copper alloy. Indeed, it seems that these chains are copied from elements of the La Tène world, but made with a material that is easier to work with or acquire. In this settlement, strongly marked by the Iberian language 21, these artefacts seem to be imitations of La Tène suspension elements by Iberian or Iberian-connected bronze artisans. Éléments sous droit d’auteur - © Ausonius Éditions septembre 2017 The adaptation of foreign weapons and their reinterpretation to meet practical requirements during combat shows the importance of the interactions in warfare between the late prehistoric populations of France and the Iberian Peninsula. From a death tool to a dead tool The last point in studying the biography of a weapon is, of course, the end of its use-life. Archaeological excavations enable us to recover objects in their primary or secondary deposition contexts. Therefore, this is by far the best-documented phase of the biography through field data. We distinguish four main types of endings: recycling, loss, exposition and deposition. Recycling In fact, recycling is a particular phase, because it is a weapon’s defunctionalization to produce another object. A weapon, and specifically a sword, loses its first utility, so this is the end of the life that the blacksmith assigned it to when s/he made it. However, transformed swords are not rare, particularly La Tène type swords. The blade is an iron source and its bar shape is an easy piece to work for a blacksmith. It is possible that many blades were reused to produce other objects, without any trace of the initial form. However, with little work, some swords have been remade as tools, for example saws, by making a row of teeth on the blade 22. In the biographical study of weaponry, it remains very difficult to identify these kinds of recycling. Loss Loss is also a possibility that we cannot exclude for any object type. The soldier certainly values his weaponry, mostly because his survival depends on it during a fight, but also because it is a marker of social distinction. Yet it is not beyond the arms bearers to sometimes lose their swords. It can be an alternative explanation for swords found in rivers, This type of discovery is the only possible to examine a weapon as it was in its “heyday”, i.e. during its time of use, without the marks of voluntary end-of-life treatments, like recycling or ritual treatments. Last stand Exhibition can take place in either domestic or communal places. In both cases, the main goal in displaying weapons is to reinforce the feeling of military power and the authority of the one or several individual(s) who exhibits. This is a possibility for swords exposed on fortifications as, for example, in Le Cailar (Occitanie, France)23 or Le Cayla in Mailhac (Occitanie, France)24. This example does not seem to be isolated, but very few instances were identified until now and they were mostly found in the south of France and in north-eastern Spain. In terms of other communal exhibition contexts, we consider sanctuaries, mainly known in the northern part of France. Excavation of the sanctuary Gournay-sur-Aronde, managed by J.-L. Brunaux, made it possible to understand the weapons’ functions in this place of worship from the moment they arrived to the moment when, 19. Rapin & Schwaller 1987. 20. Rapin & Schwaller 1987, 174-177. 21. Ruiz-Darasse 2011, 195: Indeed the onomastic is mainly Celtic, but expressed with Iberian graphy, which is probably the testimony of Iberian presence, consisting of individuals acting as “courtiers auprès d’une population gauloise fortunée” (middlemen close to a wealthy Gallic people). 22. E.g. gladius reused as saws from graves 166 and 169 at L’Hospitalet-du-Larzac (Aveyron, France): Feugère 1993, 123. 23. Roure et al. 2007, Girard & Roure 2009. 24. Bertaud 2015. Éléments sous droit d’auteur - © Ausonius Éditions septemebre 2017 Iron Age weapons in western Europe | Fig. 4. Grave 163 in Ensérune necropolis (bottom). Red elements are the chains in their discovery context, the dotted lines are the upper part of the grave, the full line is the bottom (Rapin & Schwaller 1987, 157). On the top, scale chains cliché (Schwaller 1994, 92). – 189 Alexandre Bertaud Éléments sous droit d’auteur - © Ausonius Éditions septembre 2017 190 – | Fig. 5. Zona 15 in l’Illa d’en Reixac. The red points are swords and scabbards fragments. On the top, the sword with spiking hole found in sector 2 (Martín et al. 1997, 49-52). Iron Age weapons in western Europe – 191 Éléments sous droit d’auteur - © Ausonius Éditions septemebre 2017 after being exhibited and deformed, they were abandoned 25. This study of a ritual site highlighted the fact that the display in sanctuaries was accompanied by a defunctionalization of the weapon by breaking and/or distortion 26. Weapon expositions in sanctuaries are limited to France and rarely appear in Iberian Peninsula sanctuaries27 ; if so, they only appear on a drastically smaller scale after the Roman conquest 28, probably under Italic influence, like in Gaul 29. After the collective contexts, such as exhibitions on fortifications or sanctuaries, we can now focus on the displays made within urban areas. In Catalonia, weapons which had been displayed were discovered in some settlements: Mas Castellar in Pontos 30, Puig de Sant Andreu 31 and l’Illa d’en Reixac 32 in Ullastret. L’Illa d’en Reixac is probably the most representative settlement. In the zone 15, archaeologists excavated a large building with an inner courtyard of 264 m², which opens to several rooms around it (fig. 5, bottom). In the north-eastern part, we can see an opening to the street with a porch at the end of a passage lined by five rooms. Fragments of swords and scabbards were discovered on the porch side 33. In the room closest to the entrance, a sword was found, still in its scabbard, with a hole through the entire object (fig. 5, top). This is a clear trace of display for a sword, still in its scabbard, and defunctionalised only to remain exposed. Despite this building being interpreted as a place of worship, A. Gorgues recently put a different interpretation forward, based on the comparison with another building nearby (Puig de Sant Andreu, zone 14). There, evidence of production elements was found, which can be related to aristocratic houses in the Iberian world 34. We can thus interpret the exposition practices in individual contexts as a way to enhance the prestige of the inhabitants with warlike values through display of weaponry. Values expressed by weapon expositions in individual contexts in Catalonia are also visible in other urban areas of the Iberian Peninsula, never with swords, but with other offensive weapons like spearheads 35. This individual promotion by display of weaponry does not appear in late prehistoric settlements in France. Burial Deposition is inherently the best represented “end of life” phase in the archaeological record. We mentioned that in France, the end of life of a weapon is frequently linked to collective exposition, such as in sanctuaries, while we do not find these practices on the Iberian Peninsula, or only to a lesser extent. Indeed, for the late prehistoric populations of Spain and Portugal, the most frequent type of burial of warrior tools is associated to funerary depositions in graves. To a lesser extent, many weapons in France come from funerary contexts. Most necropoleis in the Iberian Peninsula included several graves with weapons 36. For example, during the excavations at the Cabecico del Tesoro necropolis (Murcia, Spain), 98 graves containing weapons were discovered (and 60 with falcatas, out of 608 excavated graves)37. Excavations of the Numancia necropolis (Castilla y León, Spain) yielded 79 graves with weapons, of a total of 155 graves: nearly half of the graves contained weapons38. This large number of graves containing weapons indicates the importance of warrior status in these societies, even into and beyond death. Other modes of deposition include hoards, which are buried directly into the ground, or set in a container put into the ground. This usual Bronze Age practice does not seem to continue during the Late Iron Age. However, an interesting discovery made in Ampurias (Catalonia, Spain) can give us food for thought on weapon hoards during the last centuries BC. It is a set of ten La Tène type swords in their scabbards, one sword without a scabbard, three scabbards without swords and twelve suspension rings (fig. 6). This discovery was made during a short excavation in 1919 by E. Gandia I Ortega39. The (scarce) 25. Brunaux et al. 1985. 26. Rapin & Brunaux 1988, with a study of shield and spear rests, A. Rapin could highlight trajectories of weapons in this sanctuary with decay of wooden element before breaking and distortions. See also Lejars 1994 for a similar study on the same sanctuary about scabbards. 27. Gabaldón 2004, 365. 28. Gabaldón 2004, 360-363. 29. Fauduet 1993, 117; Caumont 2011. 30. Pons, dir. 2002; Rovira 1993. 31. Martín et al. 2004. 32. Martín et al. 1997. 33. Red points correspond to swords or scabbards fragments meanwhile stars represent skull fragments. Relation between skulls and swords in Iberian contexts should lead us to far from our discourse on weapon biography. 34. Gorgues 2013, 539. 35. For example in Raso at Candeleda (Castilla y León, Spain), see Bertaud 2015. 36. Quesada 1997, 632-639. 37. Quesada 1989. 38. Jimeno et al. 2004. 39. Puig 1915-1920. Éléments sous droit d’auteur - © Ausonius Éditions septembre 2017 192 – Alexandre Bertaud | Fig. 6. Swords hoard found in Ampurias (García 2006, 105). stratigraphic data denote an occupation layer below the hoard, while a house was built above the hoard. The urban character of this deposition in the context of a Greek colony is clear, but it remains impossible to interpret the context correctly. The form of the agglomerated rusting swords leads us to assume that this hoard was originally deposited in a chest. This weapon deposition within a city is unusual, which led G. García Jiménez to interpret the findings as a collective storage place from which it was possible to redistribute weapons in case of an emergency, or as spoil recovered or requisitioned, or as a gathering of weapons to prepare a riot, or as the remains of storage to sell 40. I would like to add the possibility of an indigenous demilitarization by the Romans, as we observe in other settlements in the south of France, e.g. at Cayla in Mailhac (Occitanie, France) 41. This type of discovery confronts us with the range of possibilities that can only be apprehended with difficulties, because of the fragmentary archaeological data and the small extent of the excavations. We have seen the diverse ways in which a sword can reach the end of its life. Though in some cases they could acquire a new identity by recycling, it is easier for us to understand the weapons in exposition or funerary contexts and thus the symbol of warrior power in past societies. Understanding social impact and warfare interactions through artefact biographies Through biographical studies of La Tène swords in (south-)western Europe, we have seen the dynamics of exchange and interaction that connected warriors to an ideological sphere, broader than groups defined by language or material culture. The production and use of La Tène type swords with associated scabbards in France and north-eastern Spain clearly indicate that choices of adopting offensive weaponry are intimately linked to fighting techniques. Furthermore, following the path of some weapons, we understand the complexity of interactions and the diversity of choices made by warriors from societies of the Late Iron Age, e.g. adapting La Tène type swords and La Tène scabbards in some Iberian areas. The range of possibilities we present here for the different steps in the biography of swords is unique to weaponry by the very specific function of these artefacts. This biographical study is well adapted to these particular objects whereas it seems more difficult to operate the same treatment for common objects. However, this type of study is suitable for investigating other weapons, if they are sufficiently documented. 40. García 2006, 104-107. 41. Bertaud 2015, 30. Iron Age weapons in western Europe – 193 This biographical analysis can only be made with sufficient archaeological data, especially when it comes to studying the end of the swords’ use-life. So, even when studying objects as characteristic and prestigious as swords (as much for the late prehistoric societies as for museums and researchers today), the discovery context has to be the first source of any archaeological study. Acknowledgements Éléments sous droit d’auteur - © Ausonius Éditions septemebre 2017 I would like to thank Alexis Gorgues and the Region Aquitaine who made it possible for me to present this paper during the 18th annual meeting of the EAA in Helsinki in 2012. I want to thank Florent Comte for the 3D production and his ingenuity in calculating the centre of gravity of swords. I would like to express my gratitude to Claudia Billaud who helped me translate this paper into English. References Appadurai A. ed. 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