Inscription on a Sword

[Kevin Peterson]

The local public museum had an Arms and Armor exhibit that had at least a hundred different swords and daggers, full suits of armor, smell stations (those were cool), etc.. Anyway there was a sword that had an inscription on the blade in an archaic form of Spanish. The translation of the inscription reads:

Draw me not without reason,
Sheath me not without honor.

That really made me stop and think how serious having and wearing a sword was, let alone using it. That translation reaffirms to me the real intent of our training.Just thought I would share something of interest.

[jeremy pace]

I really like that inscription. Thanks for sharing that. I started an unofficial sword group when i was 14 between me and near a dozen friends, we followed the nordic tradition of naming our swords and inscribing the name on blade or hilt. So often fantasy dictates reality and we take those things that mattered most and twist them into something they aren't.... again thank you.

[John_Clements]

Yes, "No me saques sin razon; no me enbaines sin honor" was a common phrase on swords since about the 12th century, I believe.

JC

[Kevin Peterson]

I was hoping that someone would know how that was written. I was kicking myself for not getting an adequate picture of it for my records. I did not realize that it was that common, but that inscription really makes sense to me. Makes me wonder if that was the medieval equivilant of an armed forces slogan. The Few, the Proud, the Anglo-Saxons! I was wondering if anyone had any other resources about sword inscriptions because I have a collection of interesting quotes and I think any of those would fit in nicely.