A large knife with a blade length of 18cm (7") or longer possibly used in combat.
Harke defined knives and short seaxes by size with knives being under 175mm and short seaxes being over 180mm. [CAMERON 2000:p.49]. Like Esther Cameron we have also used this as our definition. Blades of over 12" in length are more usually defined as Langseaxes.
The short seax is also known as a Scramasax, a Hadseax or just a Sax. The term Scramasax comes from Gregory of Tours writing in 575AD, who speaks of "boys with strong knives (cultris validis), which they commonly call scramasaxes (scramasaxos)." in his History of the Franks (IV, 52). [WHEELER 1935:p.176] It is not known if this name continued in use into the Viking Age.
It is not uncommon for burials in the Viking age to contain more than one knife. [BERSU and WILSON 1966: p.41] Wheeler gives his opinion that small heavy seaxes were in use up until the end of the C10th but that as a weapon it really belongs to the pre-Viking period. [WHEELER 1927: p.30]
Seaxs from the Viking Age never have metal fittings unlike the pagan Anglo-Saxon examples.
Images of Seaxes (C8th to C11th)
- 775-800AD St. Andrew Sarcophagus
- C8th England, Derbyshire, Repton. Stone carving, [CAMERON 2000:p.200] [HINTON 2005: p.105]
- 850-900AD Brussels, Bibliotheque Royale, Lat. 9987. Psychomachia
- C9th Paris, BNF, Lat. 8085 fol.57r. Virtue, armed with a sword and seax, combating a Vice. [BNF]
- C10th Brussels, Bibliotheque Royale, ms. 10066-77 Psychomachia f.112r-139r
- England, Dorset, Cranborne. Silver strap-end [HINTON 2005: p.113]
- Middleton Warrior [BAILEY 1980:pl.14]
- 975-1000AD Cambridge, Corpus Christi College MS23, f.23r.[PARKER]
- 1076AD Bayeux Tapestry [WILSON 1985:pl.6, 7]
St. Andrew Sarcophagus.jpg
Brussels Bib. ms. 10066-77
Literature (C9th to C11th)
English Seax Blades (C9th to C11th)
Out of 128 knives found from Coppergate York, only 1 can be classed as a seax. [CAMERON 2000: p.64-65]
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England, Cambridge, River Cam at Dimmock's Cote
- Current Location- University of Archaeology and Ethnology, Cambridge
- Type- ? 800AD
- Find Date- ?
- Size- Blade Length: ?; Blade Width: ?; Blade Thickness: ?; Total Length: ?
- Comments- 'large scramasax with a groove along the back of the blade' [BJORN 1940:p.69].
- Bibliography- [BJORN 1940:p.69]
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England, Cumwhitton, Plough Soil
- Current Location- Tullie House Museum
- Type- ?
- Find Date- ?
- Size- Blade Length: ?; Blade Width: 30mm; Blade Thickness: ?; Total Length: 220mm
- Comments- 'Patern-welded blade with remains of possible leather sheath still attached' [PATERSON 2014:cat.634].
- Bibliography- [PATERSON 2014:p.50,51 & Cat.634]
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England, Cumwhitton, Grave 5
- Current Location- Tullie House Museum
- Type- ?
- Find Date- ?
- Size- Blade Length: 182mm; Blade Width: ?; Blade Thickness: ?; Total Length: 270mm
- Comments- 'Part pattern welded. Has a horn handle with inlaid silver wire.' [PATERSON 2014:cat.885].
- Bibliography- [PATERSON 2014:p.110 & Cat.885]
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England, Kent, Sittingbourne
- Current Location- British Museum 1881,0623.1
- Type- Wheeler IV 900-925AD
- Find Date- 1881
- Size- Blade Length: ?; Blade Width: ?; Blade Thickness: ?; Total Length: ?
- Comments- 'inlaid with copper, bronze, silver and niello.' [WILSON 1964:cat.80].
- Bibliography- [WILSON 1964:cat.80] [British Museum]
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England, London
- Current Location- London Museum ALG84[588]381
- Type- Wheeler III/II 1000-1100AD
- Find Date- ?
- Size- Blade Length: ?; Blade Width: ?; Blade Thickness: ?; Total Length: 247mm
- Comments-
- Bibliography- [Museum of London]
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England, London, Honey Lane
- Current Location- British Museum 1856,7-1,1413
- Type- Wheeler IV 978-1016AD
- Find Date- 1856
- Size- Blade Length: ?; Blade Width: ?; Blade Thickness: ?; Total Length: 327mm
- Comments-
- Bibliography- [WILSON 1965:Cat.43]
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England, London, Park Street
- Current Location- British Museum 1879,12-22.1
- Type- 800-1000AD
- Find Date-
- Size- Blade Length: ?; Blade Width: ?; Blade Thickness: ?; Total Length: 266mm
- Comments-
- Bibliography- [WILSON 1965:Cat.81]
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England, London, Princes Street
- Current Location- London Museum 29.94,17 (Wheeler 21)
- Type- 900-1000AD
- Find Date-
- Size- Blade Length: ?; Blade Width: ?; Blade Thickness: ?; Total Length: ?
- Comments-
- Bibliography- [WHEELER 1935:p.]
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England, London,Thames
- Current Location- British Museum 1859,1-22.12
- Type- 800-1000AD
- Find Date-
- Size- Blade Length: ?; Blade Width: ?; Blade Thickness: ?; Total Length: 232mm
- Comments-
- Bibliography- [WILSON 1965:Cat.50]
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England, London, Thames
- Current Location- London Museum A1781 (Wheeler 25)
- Type- 900-1100AD
- Find Date-
- Size- Blade Length: 247mm; Blade Width: ?; Blade Thickness: ?; Total Length: 334mm
- Comments-
- Bibliography- [WHEELER 1935:p.]
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England, London, Thames at Blackfriars
- Current Location- London Museum A9313 (Wheeler 8)
- Type- 800-1000AD
- Find Date-
- Size- Blade Length: ?; Blade Width: ?; Blade Thickness: ?; Total Length: ?
- Comments-
- Bibliography- [WHEELER 1935:p.]
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England, London, Thames at Brentford
- Current Location- London Museum A10721 (Wheeler 11)
- Type- 700-900AD
- Find Date-
- Size- Blade Length: ?; Blade Width: ?; Blade Thickness: ?; Total Length: ?
- Comments-
- Bibliography- [WHEELER 1935:p.]
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English style Seax Sheathes (C9th to C11th)
Seax sheaths are made from substantial leather up to 3mm thick and closed by rivets about 4 to 5cm apart. In England there are 12 finds of Seax sheaths out of a total of 61 [CAMERON 2000: p.64-65]
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Ireland, Dublin, Christchurch Place
- Current Location- ? (Cameron 2007 cat.DLS 4)
- Type- ?
- Find Date- ?
- Size- Blade Length: ?; Total Length: 367mm ; Total Width: ?
- Comments-
- Bibliography- [CAMERON 2007:p.]
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Ireland, Dublin, Christchurch Place
- Current Location- ? (Cameron 2007 cat.DLS 5)
- Type- ?
- Find Date- ?
- Size- Blade Length: ?; Total Length: 295mm ; Total Width: ?
- Comments-
- Bibliography- [CAMERON 2007:p.]
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Ireland, Dublin, Fishamble Street
- Current Location- ? (Cameron 2007 cat.DLS 11)
- Type- ?
- Find Date- ?
- Size- Blade Length: ?; Total Length: 405mm ; Total Width: ?
- Comments-
- Bibliography- [CAMERON 2007:p.]
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England, Gloucester
- Current Location- ? (Cameron 2000 cat.349)
- Type- ?
- Find Date- ?
- Size- Blade Length: ?; Total Length: 405mm ; Total Width: ?
- Comments-
- Bibliography- [CAMERON 2000:p.]
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England, York, Coppergate
- Current Location- ? (Cameron 2000 cat.206)
- Type- ?
- Find Date- ?
- Size- Blade Length: ?; Total Length: ? ; Total Width: ?
- Comments-
- Bibliography- [CAMERON 2000:p.]
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England, York, Parliament Street
- Current Location- ? sf.753 (Cameron 2000 cat.207)
- Type- ?
- Find Date- ?
- Size- Blade Length: ?; Total Length: ? ; Total Width: ?
- Comments-
- Bibliography- [CAMERON 2000:p.113]
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England, York, Parliament Street
- Current Location- ? sf.754 (Cameron 2000 cat.205)
- Type- ?
- Find Date- ?
- Size- Blade Length: ?; Total Length: ? ; Total Width: ?
- Comments-
- Bibliography- [CAMERON 2000:p.112]
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England, York
- Current Location- ? sf.4332 (Cameron 2000 cat.347)
- Type- ?
- Find Date- ?
- Size- Blade Length: ?; Total Length: ? ; Total Width: ?
- Comments-
- Bibliography- [CAMERON 2000:p.135]
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England, London, Cheapside
- Current Location- ? (Cameron 145)
- Type- ?
- Find Date- ?
- Size- Blade Length: ?; Total Length: ? ; Total Width: ?
- Comments-
- Bibliography- [VINCE 1991] [CAMERON 2000:p.208]
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A few Seax Sheathes from the C8th
- Dover, Buckland, grave 145, leather sheath dated to 700-750AD
- London, River Thames nr. Westminster Bridge, metal fittings, late C8th
- York [MOULD, CARLISLE and CAMERON 2003: p3379-3385]
- Ireland, Dublin. Style E1 [CAMERON 2007: p.15-20]
- [CAMERON 2000: p.64-65]
- England, London. One find from cheapside could have had a blade of 25cm. [CAMERON 2000: p.64-65]
See Also
Langseax
Norse Style Knives
References
<nocite>
BAILEY1980
BERSU1966
CAMERON2000
CAMERON2003
CAMERON2007
HINTON2005
VINCE1991
WilSON1965
WILSON1985
WHEELER1927
WHEELER1935
</nocite>
<biblio force=false>#Template:Bib</biblio>