04 Left-handed Dagger, Spain, 1st half of 17th century

Fotogalerie

As the Renaissance society developed, the dagger lost its previous distinctly military character and became increasingly popular among civilians. The dagger became an object of splendour and an integral part of a nobleman’s equipment. The left-handed dagger became paired with the noble rapier. When used in fencing alongside the rapier, the dagger was held in the left hand and complemented the longer weapon – binding the opponent’s weapon while the rapier was used to attack. In contrast to the older cross daggers, the left-handed daggers had a longer crossguard and much finer and more ornate workmanship. The crossguard could be straight or bent towards the blade tip or axially curved. The most famous examples of this type are the Spanish weapons from the turn of the 16^th and 17^th centuries. Their broad crossguard is complemented by a broad counterguard with rich ornamental incisions or piercings. Blades of left-handed daggers often had various notches and projections used to catch and break the blade of the opponent’s rapier.

Length 583 mm, blade length 466 mm, blade width 27 mm, weight 608 g.